Trump says U.S. will intervene if Iran ‘violently kills’ protestors
On December 31, 2025, a large anti-Israeli banner was erected in Tehran’s Palestine Square, bearing the image of a Palestinian warrior and the slogan “Voice of Eternal Resistance” in Persian and Hebrew. Israel’s Mossad spy agency made a direct appeal on December 31, 2025, urging Iranians to continue the protests and saying it supported them “on the ground” as demonstrations spread in the capital Tehran and other Iranian cities. On December 28, 2025, the protests organized by Tehran tradesmen against Iran’s worsening economy spread to other cities and attracted the attention of students. (Photo: ATTA KENARE / AFP via Getty Images)
Atta Kenare | Afp | Getty Images
President Donald Trump said Friday that if Iran intervenes “violently” in peaceful protests, the United States will “come to their rescue.”
Unrest has been growing in Iran since last week as protests broke out over the government’s handling of the sharp decline in the country’s currency and rising prices. Annual inflation hit In December, food prices increased by 42.2% and 72%. Protests turned violent this week, with local media reporting at least six civilian deaths.
“If Iran shoots and brutally kills peaceful protesters, which is their tradition, the United States will come to their rescue,” Trump said in a post on Truth Social on Friday.
“We are locked, loaded and ready to go,” he added.
Ali Larijani, an advisor to Iran’s supreme leader, responded on Friday by saying that U.S. intervention in protests in Iran is tantamount to chaos in the entire region, Reuters reported.
Iran’s economy was in a difficult situation after Trump withdrew the United States from the Iran nuclear deal in 2018 and reimposed sanctions on the country. The US attack on Iran’s nuclear facilities in June last year increased tensions and dragged Washington into Israel’s war with its long-time regional rival.
Suzanne Maloney, vice president and director of foreign policy at the Brookings Institution, has previously said that Iranian people are calling not just for economic recovery but also for regime change. He added that Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has been in power for 36 years.
Speaking to CNBC’s “Squawk Box” program on Wednesday, Maloney said, “We hear death cries for the dictator. We hear slogans comparing the regime’s support for militia groups in the region with the real interests and demands of the Iranian people.”
