Trump vows US action if Iranian regime cracks down on protests

The United States will intervene if Iran violently suppresses anti-government demonstrations, President Donald Trump warned on Friday.

In a post on his Truth Social platform, Trump wrote that if “Iran shoots and violently kills peaceful protesters,” Washington will “come to their rescue,” adding that the U.S. is “locked and loaded and ready to go.”

Demonstrations over Iran’s plunging currency and soaring inflation, the largest in three years, have widened nationwide and turned deadly as security forces clash with protesters.

Senior Iranian officials are warning of a fierce response if Washington follows through on Trump’s threat to intervene should Tehran use lethal force against demonstrators.

Ali Shamkhani, a senior adviser to Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, wrote on X that “every hand of intervention that approaches Iranian security under any pretext will be cut off with a regrettable response before it arrives.”

Another top Khamenei aide, Ali Larijani, said on X that “Trump must realize that U.S. intervention in this internal matter will lead to destabilizing the entire region and destroying American interests,” adding that “the American people must know that Trump is the one who started this adventure, and they should pay attention to the safety of their soldiers.”

In Israel, opposition lawmaker Avigdor Liberman, chairman of the Yisrael Beiteinu Party, signaled support for U.S. action, writing on X that if Washington moves from threats to concrete steps over any killing of peaceful demonstrators in Iran, “Israel would also join the move.”

Israel’s Persian X account posted in Farsi in support of the protests, writing, “The rise of the lion-men and lion-women of Iran for the battle against darkness. Light is victorious over darkness.”

Israeli National Security Minister Itamar Ben-Gvir also voiced support for the protests, writing on his X account in Farsi on Friday that “the people of Iran deserve a free life, liberated from the killer dictator Khamenei. We stand with you!”

The Israel Defense Forces is expediting preparations for a multi-front war with Iran in light of the internal unrest in the Islamic Republic, Hebrew media reported on Wednesday.

Trump said on Monday that his country would “knock the hell out of” Iran’s government if it attempted to rebuild nuclear sites targeted by the United States and Israel in June. Trump spoke during a press conference in Florida alongside visiting Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

In remarks to reporters, Trump agreed to military action alongside the IDF if Tehran continued with its missiles and nuclear activities.

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian on Tuesday threatened a “harsh” response to possible renewed Israeli or U.S. attacks on its nuclear program or ballistic missile arsenal.

In an interview published on Saturday, Pezeshkian told an official publication of the Islamic Republic: “In my opinion, we are in a full-fledged war with America, Israel and Europe. They do not want our country to stand on its feet.”

Asked by JNS about Pezeshkian’s war remarks, Blue and White Party leader Benny Gantz on Monday urged the international community to step up pressure on Iran, calling the Islamic Republic a “global” challenge and a direct threat to Israel.

“It seems as if the president of Iran is actually admitting that Iran is indeed what I said about it,” Gantz, a former Israeli defense minister and IDF chief, said at a Knesset faction meeting.