U.S. President Donald Trump has warned that Washington could take military action against Iran if its security forces violently crack down on citizens protesting the country’s deepening economic crisis.
In a post on Truth Social on Friday, Trump said the United States was prepared to launch a rescue mission “if Iran shoots and violently kills peaceful protesters,” adding that the U.S. was “locked and loaded and ready to go.”
Iranian officials swiftly rejected the warning. Ali Larijani, Secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, said statements from U.S. and Israeli leaders had exposed what he described as the “real agenda” behind the crisis. He cautioned Trump that any American interference in Iran’s internal affairs would trigger widespread regional instability and harm U.S. interests.
“The American people should know that Trump is starting this adventurism,” Larijani wrote on X, urging Washington to consider the safety of its troops.
Echoing the warning, Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei’s adviser, Ali Shamkhani, said any threat to Iran’s security would be met forcefully, while Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf declared that U.S. bases and forces in the region would become “legitimate targets” in the event of an incursion.
Iran is experiencing its most serious unrest since 2022. Protests that began with shopkeepers on December 28 have spread nationwide, evolving into a broader anti-government movement. Security forces have reportedly used tear gas and live ammunition, with at least seven deaths recorded.
Authorities have announced so-called “energy holidays,” widely seen as an effort to limit public gatherings. Although President Masoud Pezeshkian’s government has expressed readiness to engage protesters over what it calls “legitimate demands,” demonstrations continue in several cities.
