No Sign Of New Protests In Iran As A Hard-Line Cleric Calls For Executions And Threatens Trump

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Iran returns to uneasy calm after incident a wave of protests that led to a bloody crackdown, A senior hardline cleric on Friday demanded the death penalty for detained demonstrators and directly threatened US President Donald Trump is evidence of the anger of officials in the Islamic Republic.

However, Trump compromise note droppedHe thanked Iran’s leaders for not executing hundreds of detained protesters, another sign that he may be backing away from a military offensive. Executions continue, as do the killings of peaceful protesters. Two of the red lines drawn by Trump for possible action against Iran.

The harsh crackdown, which left thousands dead, appears to have succeeded in suppressing demonstrations that began on December 28 over Iran’s ailing economy and turned into protests that directly challenged the country’s theocracy.

There have been no signs of protests for days in Tehran, where shopping and street life have returned to normal even after a week. internet outage continued. Authorities reported no unrest elsewhere in the country.

“Iran canceled the execution of more than 800 people,” Trump told reporters in Washington, adding, “I have great respect for their cancellation.”

Trump did not say who he spoke to in Iran to confirm the status of the planned executions.

The US-based Human Rights Activists News Agency announced the death toll as 3,090 on Friday. The number continues to rise, surpassing any other protests or unrest in Iran for decades and reminiscent of the chaos surrounding the 1979 revolution. The agency has provided accurate information throughout the years of demonstrations, relying on a network of activists who have verified all reported deaths in Iran.

The AP could not independently verify the toll. The Iranian government did not disclose casualty figures.

In response, Ayatollah Ahmed Khatami’s sermon on Iranian state radio sparked chants among those gathered for prayer, including: “Armed hypocrites must be executed!”

Khatami, a long-time member of Iran’s Assembly of Experts and the Guardian Council known for his strict views, described the protesters as Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s “servants” and “Trump’s soldiers.” He said Netanyahu and Trump should expect “harsh revenge from the system.”

“Americans and Zionists should not expect peace,” the cleric said.

His fiery speech came as Iran and U.S. allies seek to defuse tensions. Russian President Vladimir Putin met with both Iranian President Massoud Pezeshkian and Israeli Prime Minister Netanyahu on Friday, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said.

Russia had previously remained largely silent on the protests. Moscow has seen many of its key allies suffer blows as its resources and focus have been drained by the 4-year-old war against Ukraine, including the ouster of Syria’s former president. Bashar Assad In 2024, last year’s USA and Israel Attacks against Iran and the U.S. capture of Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro this month.

Days after Trump promised protesters “help is on the way,” both the demonstrations and the prospect of imminent U.S. retaliation appeared to have receded. A diplomat told The Associated Press that senior officials from Egypt, Oman, Saudi Arabia and Qatar expressed concerns He said US military intervention with Trump would shake the global economy and destabilize an already unstable region.

Iran was exiled Crown Prince Reza Pahlavi He called on the United States to fulfill its promise to intervene. Pahlavi, whose father was overthrown by Iran 1979 Islamic RevolutionHe said he still believes in the president’s promise of help.

“I believe the president is a man of his word,” Pahlavi told reporters in Washington. “Whether action is taken or not, we as Iranians do not have the option of continuing the fight,” he added.

“I will return to Iran,” he swore. Hours later, he called on protesters to take to the streets again from Saturday to Monday.

Despite the support of diehard monarchists in the diaspora, Pahlavi struggled to gain wider traction in Iran. However, this did not prevent him from presenting himself as the interim leader of Iran in the event of the regime’s fall.

Hardline cleric Khatami also presented the first general statistics on damage from the protests, claiming that 350 mosques, 126 places of worship and 20 other holy sites were damaged. Another 80 homes of Friday prayer imams, an important position in Iran’s theocracy, were damaged, possibly underscoring the anger demonstrators feel towards symbols of the government.

He said 400 hospitals, 106 ambulances, 71 fire trucks and 50 emergency vehicles were also damaged.

Although the protests seem to have been suppressed in Iran, thousands of exiled Iranians and their supporters taken to the streets to vent their anger at the government in cities across Europe. Islamic Republic.

During the ongoing internet blackout, some Iranians have crossed borders to communicate with the outside world. A group of Iranians who crossed the border gate in Türkiye’s eastern Van province on Friday said they were traveling to overcome the communications blackout.

“I will return to Iran after the internet opens,” said one traveler, who gave only his name (Mahdi) out of security concerns.

Some Turkish citizens fleeing the unrest in Iran also crossed the border.

When the protests broke out, 47-year-old Mehmet Önder was in Tehran for textile business. He said that he did not show up at his hotel until it was closed for security reasons, and then he stayed with one of his clients until he returned to Türkiye.

Önder said that although he did not go out into the street, he heard intense gunshots.

“I understand guns because I served in the military in southeastern Türkiye,” he said. “The weapons they fired were not simple guns, but machine guns.”

As a sign of conflict’s potential to transcend borders, Kurdish separatist group In Iraq, it was stated that Iran has launched attacks on the paramilitary Revolutionary Guard in recent days in retaliation for Tehran’s pressure on protests.

A representative of the Kurdistan Freedom Party (PAK) said its members “play a role in the protests through both financial support and armed operations to defend protesters when necessary.” The group said the attacks were carried out by members of its military wing in Iran.

His superior reported from New York. Associated Press journalists Will Weissert and Darlene Superville in Washington and Serra Yedikardes at the Türkiye Kapıköy Border Gate contributed.