United States President Donald Trump said Friday that the United States is prepared to respond if Iranian authorities harm protesters, following violent clashes in the country over rising living costs.
Demonstrations in several Iranian cities on Thursday turned deadly, with six people reported killed—the first fatalities since the unrest intensified.
The protests began in Tehran, where shopkeepers went on strike Sunday to protest high prices and economic stagnation. The movement has since spread to other parts of the country.
Trump posted on his social media platform, Truth Social, that “if Iran shoots and violently kills peaceful protesters, which is their custom, the United States of America will come to their rescue.” He added, “We are locked and loaded and ready to go.”
According to Iran’s Fars news agency, two people were killed in Lordegan, in Chaharmahal and Bakhtiari province, and three others in Azna, in neighboring Lorestan province. State television reported that a member of Iran’s security forces was also killed overnight in Kouhdasht, in western Iran.
The current demonstrations are smaller than the major protests in 2022, which followed the death of Mahsa Amini while in custody. Her arrest for allegedly violating Iran’s strict dress code for women sparked nationwide unrest, leaving several hundred people dead, including dozens of security personnel.
