US President Donald Trump urged Iranian demonstrators on Tuesday to persist in protests and document their abusers, pledging assistance as Tehran intensified its crackdown on unprecedented nationwide unrest. Iran immediately condemned his remarks as incitement to violence and destabilization.
“Iranian Patriots, KEEP PROTESTING – TAKE OVER YOUR INSTITUTIONS!!!… HELP IS ON ITS WAY,” Trump posted on Truth Social without specifying support details. He canceled all meetings with Iranian officials until authorities halt the “senseless killing” of protesters.
Later, he told Iranians to “save the name of the killers and the abusers … because they’ll pay a very big price.” When questioned about his pledge, Trump cryptically told reporters they would “have to figure that out,” while acknowledging military options remained under consideration.
Mounting Toll and Global Fury
An Iranian official confirmed approximately 2,000 deaths, the regime’s first overall toll after weeks of turmoil, while rights group HRANA verified 1,850 protester fatalities among those killed and reported 16,784 detentions.
Consequently, the US State Department urgently warned Americans to leave Iran immediately via land routes. Iran’s UN Ambassador Amir Saeid Iravani blasted Trump’s comments as threats to sovereignty, insisting Washington and Israel bore “direct responsibility” for civilian deaths.
Meanwhile, Russia simultaneously condemned foreign interference, warning renewed US strikes would bring “disastrous consequences.”
Regime Under Pressure
Protests erupted December 28 over economic despair but broadened into demands to overthrow Iran’s clerical rulers, their toughest internal challenge in years. Germany’s Chancellor Friedrich Merz declared the regime was witnessing “its final days and weeks,” arguing violent rule signaled inevitable collapse.
Meanwhile, communications blackouts hampered information flow even as Starlink satellite internet became freely available. Britain, France, Germany, and Italy summoned Iranian ambassadors to protest the violence, with EU chief Ursula von der Leyen calling the casualties “horrifying.”
Tehran, however, showed no signs of internal fracture within its security elite despite intensifying US tariffs targeting nations trading with Iran.
