Iran’s Khamenei accuses Trump of inciting deadly protests

Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has accused U.S. President Donald Trump of inciting weeks of unrest across Iran, as rights groups report that more than 3,000 people have been killed in the country’s deadliest protests in years.

Speaking in Tehran on Saturday, Khamenei said Washington bore responsibility for the violence and destruction that accompanied the demonstrations, which began late last month over economic hardship and escalated into nationwide calls for the end of clerical rule.

“The U.S. president is criminally responsible for the casualties, damage and slander inflicted on the Iranian nation,” Khamenei said, according to state media.

The protests, which erupted on December 28, spread rapidly across major cities and towns. Khamenei acknowledged that “several thousand” people had died, blaming the violence on foreign enemies, including the United States and Israel, whom he accused of orchestrating chaos, arson and attacks on public property.

A U.S.-based rights group, the Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA), said it had verified 3,090 deaths, including nearly 2,900 protesters, as well as more than 22,000 arrests. Iranian authorities have not confirmed those figures.

Trump has repeatedly warned Tehran against executing detained protesters, threatening “very strong action” if mass hangings were carried out.

On Friday, he posted on social media thanking Iran’s leaders for allegedly calling off executions, a claim Iranian officials denied, saying there had been “no plan to hang people.”

Responding indirectly, Khamenei said Iran would not seek war but would not allow “domestic or international criminals” to go unpunished.

In a separate interview, Trump called for “new leadership in Iran” and urged an end to Khamenei’s 37-year rule. He has also spoken favorably of exiled opposition figure Reza Pahlavi, while expressing doubts about his ability to rally sufficient support inside Iran.

Iranian authorities say arrests have followed extensive intelligence operations targeting what they describe as “rioters, terrorists and mercenaries.”

State media reported that thousands had been detained, including alleged “ringleaders” accused of coordinating unrest from abroad.

Last week, Iran’s prosecutor general warned that detainees would face severe punishment, describing those involved as mohareb — an Islamic legal term meaning “waging war against God,” which carries the death penalty under Iranian law.

The crackdown appears to have largely quelled the protests, according to residents and state media, though access to independent information remains limited.

Internet blackouts, briefly eased early on Saturday, were later reimposed, according to monitoring group NetBlocks, which said nationwide connectivity continued to “flatline” as the shutdown entered its tenth day.

Residents in some hard-hit areas said the worst violence occurred earlier in the week, as security forces moved to reassert control.

Israeli officials have publicly expressed support for Iranian opposition figures in recent weeks, with one minister acknowledging the presence of Israeli operatives inside Iran, though denying any direct effort to overthrow the leadership.

Iranian authorities continue to blame foreign influence for the unrest, while rights groups warn that the true scale of casualties may be difficult to verify amid arrests, censorship and ongoing internet restrictions.