Iran’s top diplomat issues most direct threat yet to US as crackdown over protests squeezes nation
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — Iran’s foreign minister on Wednesday issued the most direct threat yet to the United States after Tehran Bloody crackdown on protestersHe warned that the Islamic Republic “will respond with everything we have if we are attacked again.”
Comments of Abbas Araghchi who saw him Invitation to the World Economic Forum in Davos canceled What happened after the murders is revealed as an American aircraft carrier group moves west from Asia towards the Middle East. Meanwhile, American warplanes and other equipment appear to be moving toward the Middle East following a major U.S. military deployment in the Caribbean. Soldiers capture Venezuelan Nicolás Maduro.
Araghchi made the threat in an opinion piece published by The Wall Street Journal. In it, the foreign secretary claimed that “the violent phase of the unrest lasted less than 72 hours” and once again tried to blame armed demonstrators for the violence. Despite the internet shutdown, leaked videos from Iran show security forces repeatedly using live fire to target unarmed protesters; This is something Araghchi does not address.
“Unlike the restraint shown by Iran in June 2025, our powerful armed forces will not hesitate to respond with everything we have if we are subjected to a new attack,” Araghchi wrote. 12 day war started by Israel On Iran in June. “This is not a threat, but it is a fact that I feel I must state clearly because as a diplomat and a veteran, I hate war.”
He added: “An all-out conflict will certainly be violent and last much, much longer than the fantastic timelines that Israel and its proxies are trying to sell to the White House. It will certainly envelop a wider region and have an impact on ordinary people around the world.”
Middle Eastern countries, especially diplomats of Gulf Arab countries, had lobbied Trump not to attack. Last week, Iran closed its airspacepossibly in anticipation of a strike.
According to ship tracking data, USS Abraham Lincoln, which has been in the South China Sea recently, passed through the Strait of Malacca, an important waterway connecting the South China Sea and the Indian Ocean, on Tuesday.
A U.S. Navy official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the aircraft carrier and its three escorting destroyers were heading west.
While Navy and other defense officials have refrained from saying the carrier strike group is headed for the Middle East, its current heading and location in the Indian Ocean means it is just days away from advancing into the region.
The US-based Human Rights Activists News Agency said that the number of deaths in the protests reached at least 4,519 people. The agency has provided accurate information about demonstrations and unrest in Iran over the years, relying on its network of activists to verify all deaths reported within the country. The Associated Press was not able to independently assess the death toll.
The death toll exceeds that of other protests and unrest in Iran in decades and is reminiscent of the chaos surrounding the 1979 revolution that gave rise to the Islamic Republic. Although there have been no protests for days, it is feared the death toll could rise significantly as information trickles in from a country still under pressure. internet shutdown by government Since January 8th.
Khamenei said on Saturday that “several thousand” people had died in the protests and blamed the United States. This was the first indication from an Iranian leader of the extent of casualties.
More than 26,300 people were arrested, according to the Human Rights Activists News Agency. Authorities’ comments sparked fear among some of those detained He is executed in Iran One of the best executioners in the world. This and the killing of peaceful protesters were Trump’s two red lines in the tension.
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Associated Press writers Konstantin Toropin and Elena Becatoros in Washington contributed to this report.
