According to human rights groups, at least eight people have been killed in the protests against the economic situation in Iran, which have been going on for days, including a 15-year-old teenager. In addition, around 30 people have been arrested. The demonstrations are continuing for the sixth day in a row.
The protests were triggered by the sharp decline in the value of the Iranian rial and the continuing rise in the cost of living. The first demonstrations began on Sunday at the large mobile phone market in Tehran against the sudden devaluation of the national currency. The protests have now spread to more than two dozen cities, including Karaj, Shiraz, Isfahan, Mashhad, Kerman, Kermanshah, Sanandaj, and Saqqez.
In recent days, there have also been increasing demonstrations at universities. After the protests spread to universities, President Masoud Pezeshkian ordered the temporary closure of universities and state institutions. He cited “energy-saving measures” due to bad weather as the reason for this decision.
Meanwhile, US President Donald Trump warned Iran’s authorities against killing peaceful protesters, saying America “will come to their rescue”.
“If Iran shoots and violently kills peaceful protesters, which is their custom, the United States of America will come to their rescue,” Trump wrote in a post on Truth Social on Friday.
“We are locked and loaded and ready to go,” he added.
Iran’s supreme leader adviser, Ali Larijani, responded by saying that U.S. interference in Iran’s protests was equivalent to chaos across the entire region, in comments reported by Reuters.