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The US president said Washington would intervene if Tehran violently repressed protests against rising prices.
Published on January 2, 2026
US President Donald Trump said Washington was “locked and tasked” to respond if Iran killed more protesters, after cost-of-living protests in the country turned deadly.
Protesters and security forces clashed Thursday in several Iranian cities, leaving six people dead, the first since the start of the conflict. troubles has degenerated.
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Traders in the capital, Tehran, went on strike on Sunday against high prices and economic stagnation, actions which have since spread to other parts of the country.
Trump said on his Truth Social platform on Friday that “if Iran violently shoots and kills peaceful protesters, as is their wont, the United States of America will come to their aid.”
“We are locked, loaded and ready to go,” the Republican leader added.
Ali Larijani, secretary of the Supreme National Security Council, condemned Trump’s remarks, saying he “should know that American interference in this internal matter amounts to chaos in the entire region and the destruction of American interests.”
“We consider the positions of the protesting traders distinct from those of the destructive elements,” Larijani added in an article on X.
“The American people must know that Trump started adventurism. He must take care of his own soldiers.”
Larijani’s remarks were likely in reference to the vast U.S. military footprint in the region. In June, Iran attacked Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar following US strikes on three Iranian nuclear sites during the 12-day war between Israel and Iran.
Iran’s Fars news agency reported on Thursday that two people were killed in clashes between security forces and protesters in the town of Lordegan, in Chaharmahal and Bakhtiari province, and three in Azna, in neighboring Lorestan province.
State television reported earlier that a member of Iran’s security forces was killed overnight during protests in the western town of Kuhdasht.
Dozens of arrests were also reported by authorities in several cities.
Public dissatisfaction
Al Jazeera’s Tohid Asadi, reporting from Tehran, said Iran’s economic woes are putting significant pressure on Iranians.
“These protests initially started sporadically, but then spread to smaller towns,” he said.
“We can see the public mood and discontent during the protests,” he said, adding that clashes between protesters and security forces occurred mainly in small towns.
Iran’s economy has struggled for years since the United States reimposed sanctions in 2018, after Trump withdrew from an international nuclear deal during his first term.
The deal was reached by his predecessor Barack Obama after a long series of negotiations involving Iran and other Western powers.
The latest protests are the largest since 2022, when unrest was sparked by the death in custody of Mahsa Amini, who was arrested for allegedly violating Iran’s strict dress code for women.
His death sparked a nationwide wave of anger that left several hundred dead, including dozens of members of the security forces.
