KEY POINTS
- Khamenei blames US President Trump for inciting nationwide protests.
- Protests began on December 28 over economic hardship and currency devaluation.
- Trump praises Iran for cancelling executions of protesters.
- Khamenei accuses US and Israel of organising unrest and causing casualties.
TEHRAN, Iran: Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on Saturday blamed US President Donald Trump for inciting the wave of protests that swept the country in recent weeks, saying the United States and its allies were responsible for casualties and widespread damage.
The nationwide protests in Iran began on December 28 over economic hardship and currency devaluation.
Trump had repeatedly threatened intervention, including vowing to “take very strong action” if Iran executed protesters.
On Thursday, he praised Tehran on social media for cancelling mass executions.
“I greatly respect the fact that all scheduled hangings, which were to take place yesterday (over 800 of them), have been cancelled by the leadership of Iran. Thank you!” Trump posted.
While addressing a crowd of supporters, Khamenei said the US president was “criminal for the casualties, damages and accusations he has levelled against the Iranian nation” and accused the United States and Israel of organising protests and inciting violence.
“We hold the American president guilty for the casualties, damages and accusations he has levelled against the Iranian nation,” Khamenei told a crowd of supporters during an address marking a religious holiday.
“This was an American conspiracy,” Khamenei said, adding that “America’s goal is to swallow Iran … the goal is to put Iran back under military, political and economic domination”.
“By God’s grace, the Iranian nation must break the back of the seditionists just as it broke the back of the sedition,” he said.
“We do not intend to lead the country to war, but we will not spare domestic criminals,” he added, saying that “international criminals” were “worse” and would also not be spared punishment.
Iran blames foreign powers
Iranian authorities have blamed the United States for fuelling a “terrorist operation” that they say hijacked peaceful protests over the economy.
Iran was rocked by weeks of demonstrations sparked by anger over economic hardship.
Meanwhile, after repeated warnings, Trump on Thursday had changed his stance on military intervention in Iran, adopting a “watch it and see” posture instead.
He had cited assurances from “very important sources on the other side” indicating that Tehran had ceased using force against demonstrators.
“They’ve said the killing has stopped and the executions won’t take place,” Trump said.
Asked by a reporter if US military action was now off the table, the president replied: “We’re going to watch it and see what the process is.”
Iranian authorities labelled some protestors as armed “terrorists” linked to foreign powers.
State-affiliated media reported arrests of individuals described as “ringleaders”, allegedly coordinating unrest.
In Mashhad, 22 ringleaders were reportedly arrested, along with more than 10 suspects accused of killings and 50 for arson.
In Gilan province, authorities said over 1,500 people were detained, including 50 alleged ringleaders.
Internet partially restored
After an eight-day nationwide internet blackout, connectivity partially resumed on Saturday.
The semi-official Mehr News Agency reported that some users regained access, while SMS services were also reactivated.
Internet monitoring group NetBlocks said connectivity rose slightly. Residents reported the internet returned early on Saturday.
The protests erupted on December 28 over economic hardship, culminating in mass violence late last week.
Tensions in Iran, however, subsided after three weeks of protests.
