Iran threatens revenge if Trump intervenes as reports claim 500 dead | World | News

Iran has issued stern warnings of immediate retaliatory strikes against the United States if Donald Trump intervenes in the ongoing demonstrations sweeping the country. There were chaotic scenes in Tehran and many other urban centers across the country, with estimates of more than 500 deaths and more than 10,000 detained.

While Trump was considering possible measures to support the demonstrators, Iranian officials declared that America would become a “legitimate target.” Opposition movements operating from the UK said they had received information about horrific incidents involving police opening fire on demonstrators.

They also described extraordinary displays of courage by senior citizens who fought back against heavily armed security forces by banging cookware together.

Demonstrators knocked over trash cans and set them on fire while pointing toward firearms. Medical facilities reported such an influx of critically injured individuals that staff were unable to initiate resuscitation attempts for many injured.

A healthcare worker, who wished to remain anonymous, stated that he witnessed ‘direct shots being fired into the heads and hearts of young people’.

Another resident said: “It’s terrible. The protests continue until after midnight every night. They shoot at people. They fire large amounts of tear gas. A friend of ours’ brother was killed in Tehran. When his family went to the Kahrizak morgue to look for his body, [said they] “Nearly a hundred corpses were shown.”

Despite the nationwide internet blackout, demonstrators managed to bypass restrictions using illegal Starlink terminals, allowing images and testimonies to be transmitted to the international community via satellite links.

The speaker of the Iranian parliament, Mohammed Bagher Galibaf, issued a stern warning that America and Israel would become “legitimate targets” if the United States attacked Iran.

Chanting “Death to America”, he declared: “In the event of an attack on Iran, both the occupied territory and all American military centres, bases and ships in the region will be our legitimate targets.”

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian placed responsibility for the recent turmoil squarely on Washington and Tel Aviv.

“They trained some people at home and abroad, brought terrorists from abroad to the country, set fire to mosques, attacked markets and guilds in Rasht and set the bazaar on fire,” he claimed.

Speaking to state television, Iranian police chief Ahmed Reza Radan confirmed that the authorities had intensified their response to the demonstrators and announced that people he described as “key figures” were detained during the operations held on Saturday evening.

While he attributed “a significant portion of the deaths” to “trained and directed individuals” rather than security forces, he did not provide further details. He continued: “Significant arrests were made last night among the main elements of the riots, and these people, God willing, will be punished after going through legal procedures.”

Iran’s attorney general has previously warned that anyone caught protesting or aiding protesters could be accused of being an “enemy of God,” a crime punishable by death.

Mr. Trump said Iran was “looking at FREEDOM” and the United States was “ready to help.”

Razgar Alani, who lives in Brighton and is the UK representative of the Iranian Kurdistan Democratic Party, is desperately trying to contact his family and friends in Iran.

He said: “The collapse of the religious regime in Iran is not just a matter of when but how. The regime is collapsing under the weight of its own failures.

“I believe that Iran’s evil regime is about to end. We expect the West to aid its final collapse. The international community must provide moral and practical support to ensure that the Iranian people’s struggle for freedom is not in vain.:”.

In Tehran, masked protesters were seen taking shelter behind garbage bins and bonfires, with security forces visible from a distance. A bus-like vehicle was seen engulfed in flames.

Multiple gunshots and the sound of pots and pans colliding can be heard. One person standing on a nearby footbridge fires several shots in various directions, while others appear to be hiding behind a fence.

Another verified video from Saturday night shows protesters taking control of the streets in the Gisha district.

Additional verified footage from the capital reveals a large group of protesters and the sound of pot crashing in Punak Square, as well as a crowd of demonstrators marching along a road in the Heravi district, calling for the end of the religious institution.

The US-based Human Rights Activists News Agency reported that at least 500 people lost their lives and 10,000 people were detained. A spokesman said: “An investigation of the causes of death shows that most of the victims were killed with live ammunition or pellet guns, predominantly at close range.”

Reza Pahlavi, the exiled son of the last Shah of Iran, who lives in America and whose return the demonstrators demand, shared a video on X yesterday.

The message read: “Your fellow citizens around the world are proudly shouting out your voice… President Trump, in particular, has carefully observed your indescribable courage as the leader of the free world and announced his readiness to help you.”

He continued: “I know I’ll be with you soon.”

He claimed that the Islamic Republic had a “serious shortage of mercenaries” and that “many armed and security forces abandoned their workplaces or did not comply with orders to repress the population.” Pahlavi called on demonstrators to continue their protests by staying in groups or among crowds and “not to endanger your lives.”