BULLY, BLUFF & BLUSTER
Trump Threatens Intervention as Iran’s Economic Protests Turn Violent
US President Donald Trump has warned that Washington is prepared to intervene if Iranian authorities use lethal force against peaceful protesters, as demonstrations over worsening economic conditions spread across the country and turn increasingly violent.
In a post on his Truth Social platform on Friday, Trump said the United States would act if Iranian security forces shot and killed demonstrators. He wrote that such actions were customary for the Iranian regime and added that the US was “locked and loaded and ready to go.” The statement followed reports of deaths during Iran’s most serious wave of protests in three years.
Iranian officials quickly pushed back. Ali Larijani, a former speaker of parliament and current secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council, accused Israel and the United States of fueling the unrest, though he provided no evidence. Writing on X, a platform blocked in Iran, Larijani warned that US intervention in what he described as a domestic issue would trigger chaos across the region and damage American interests. He added that Americans should understand that Trump was embarking on dangerous adventurism and urged them to be mindful of the safety of US soldiers.
The protests began over sharp price increases and economic hardship after Iran’s national currency plunged to record lows. What started as a merchants’ strike in Tehran has since spread to multiple provinces, with shop owners, bazaar traders and university students joining demonstrations and chanting slogans against the government. While the scale remains smaller than the nationwide unrest seen in 2022, the current protests represent the largest outbreak of public anger since then.
Clashes between demonstrators and security forces have intensified in recent days. State television reported that a volunteer member of the Basij paramilitary force was killed overnight during protests in the western city of Kuhdasht. According to various reports, at least six civilians have also died in confrontations with security forces across the country.
Semi-official media outlet Fars News Agency said two people were killed in clashes in Lordegan, in the southwestern province of Chaharmahal and Bakhtiari, while three others died in Azna, in neighboring Lorestan province. A human rights group, Hengaw, also reported fatalities, saying security forces had fired on protesters, killing and wounding several people. Hengaw added that another protester was shot dead in central Isfahan province.
Footage shared online, though unverified, appeared to show demonstrators throwing stones at police in Lordegan. Fars claimed that protesters attacked the governor’s office, banks and other state buildings and alleged that armed individuals exploited the protests. The agency said authorities later seized firearms from several people, though no evidence was provided
The earliest reported death linked to the unrest occurred on Wednesday night, when a member of the Basij was killed and 13 others were injured in Kuhdasht, according to state-affiliated media. Fars broadcast images of a police officer receiving medical treatment after allegedly being set on fire during the clashes. The Basij force, which is loyal to Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and affiliated with the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, is often deployed to suppress protests.
Authorities have moved quickly to make arrests. The prosecutor in Kuhdasht said 20 people were detained during the protests there. In Malard county, west of Tehran, officials reported the arrest of 30 individuals on charges of disturbing public order. A local official said those detained were abusing their lawful right to protest and claimed some had traveled from neighboring areas to take part.
The unrest reflects deep frustration with Iran’s prolonged economic crisis. The economy has been under severe strain since the United States reimposed sweeping sanctions in 2018, following Trump’s withdrawal from the international nuclear agreement during his first term. Inflation exceeded 40 percent in December, further eroding living standards.
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian has attempted to ease tensions by replacing the central bank chief and instructing the interior minister to listen to what he described as the protesters’ legitimate demands. Speaking on state television, Pezeshkian said that failing to address people’s livelihoods would have grave moral consequences. At the same time, authorities have warned against exploiting the situation and have promised a firm response to unrest.
The US State Department said it was alarmed by reports of intimidation, violence and arrests of protesters and called on Iranian authorities to halt the crackdown. In a message posted in Farsi, the department expressed support for Iranians demanding respect for their voices and rights.
Many Iranians remain wary of what may come next. The death of a young Basij volunteer has raised fears that the authorities could use it as a pretext for a harsher crackdown, similar to the response that followed the Women, Life, Freedom protests in 2022 after the death of Mahsa Amini in police custody. That movement was suppressed with heavy force, leaving hundreds dead and thousands imprisoned.
Iran’s Supreme National Security Council
secretary warns US interference
would destabilize region
Statements by Israeli officials and Trump make 'what has been going on behind the scenes ... clear,' says Ali Larijani, responding to online remarks by Trump saying US is 'locked and loaded'
Seyit Kurt |02.01.2026 - TRT/AA
ISTANBUL
US interference in Iran would both destabilize the Middle East and devastate US interests as well, warned the secretary of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council on Friday.
Responding in English to recent remarks by US President Donald Trump, Ali Larijani said on US social media company X: “With the statements by Israeli officials and Trump, what has been going on behind the scenes is now clear.”
He said Iran distinguishes between the stance of Iran’s “protesting shopkeepers and the actions of disruptive actors,” warning that US interference in what he described as an internal matter would “destabilize the entire region and destroy America’s interests.”
"The American people should know — Trump started this adventurism. They should be mindful of their soldiers’ safety," he added.
Larijani’s remarks came after US President Donald Trump warned that Washington would intervene if Iran “shoots and violently kills peaceful protesters,” saying that the US is “locked and loaded and ready to go.”
Javid Shah war cry in Iran: A taboo phrase
Protests against the regime of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei are raging across Iran. Fuelled by economic distress, protestors are calling for the clerical regime to step down and restoration of the Shah's monarchy. The slogan, "Javid Shah" ("Long Live the Shah"), is being raised. The Shah, whose regime was toppled in 1979, has now become the voice of Iranian resistance against the theocratic regime which ousted the monarchy.
Iranians are calling for the return of the Shah's rule, 47 years after it was ousted in the Islamic Revolution in 1979. (Image: AP/Queen Farah Pahlavi)
India Today World Desk
New Delhi,
Written By: Shounak Sanyal
Protests against Iran's regime of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei have spread nationwide, beginning in Tehran among the merchants before expanding to dozens of cities. By Friday, January 2, protests were reported in more than 30 cities, including Qom, the bastion of Iran's ruling clerical class. The unrest is the largest since the 2022 protests following Mahsa Amini's death, which saw pro-monarchy chants backing the former Pahlavi Shah and its crown prince, Reza Pahlavi.
Along with chants of "Mullahs must leave Iran", the slogan of "Javid Shah," meaning "long live the Shah", was raised by the protestors.
Economic distress initially fuelled the protests, driven by a sharply depreciating currency, trading at around 42,000 rials to the United States dollar, and inflation of up to 42 percent. The protests have evolved into open calls for the theocratic regime to step down. Iranian American journalist Masih Alinejad said protesters were chanting slogans "Death to the
So, who is the Shah that Iranians are now invoking to oppose the rule of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei? It was during the rule of the Shah that protests led by Ruhollah Khomeini, the predecessor of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, ousted the monarchy in 1979. As a result, a Shia clerical system was established in Iran, with the office of the Ayatollah, or Supreme Leader, at the head of the state.
Reza Pahlavi, who is now the crown prince of the long-deposed Pahlavi dynasty, and is living in exile in the United States, has voiced support for the protests. He praised demonstrators for resisting the regime and called for unity while honouring those who have died seeking greater freedom.
Who is Reza Pahlavi? What is the Pahlavi dynasty, calls for whose restoration, is being raised? The name of the Shah had been a taboo in Iran. It has now become the rallying cry for the latest movement against the rule of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
WHO IS REZA PAHLAVI?
Reza Pahlavi was born in 1960, in Tehran, the capital of Iran. He is the eldest son of Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, the Shah of Iran, whose regime was toppled in the 1979 Iranian Revolution.
A proponent of liberal democracy, he is the founder and leader of the National Council of Iran, an exiled opposition group.
He advocates a free referendum to determine Iran's future system of government. Pahlavi was formally named Crown Prince in 1967 during his father's coronation. He has been active in the Iranian democracy movement and is a prominent critic of the Islamic Republic, led by the Ayatollah. He has repeatedly called for nationwide protests and for the removal of the current regime.
During the current protests, Pahlavi has once again announced his support for the movement.
Writing on X, he urged Iranians to "use every opportunity, gathering, and event in the coming days to expand this movement," and called for protestors to "honour each and every fallen hero of this national uprising" and "continue until the day Iran is free."
WHAT IS THE PAHLAVI DYNASTY AND WHY DID IT FALL?
The Pahlavi dynasty ruled Iran from 1925 to 1979.
It was founded by Reza Shah Pahlavi, a British-trained military officer who rose to power after the Qajar dynasty was weakened and formally deposed in 1925. Reza Shah ruled until 1941, when a joint British and Soviet invasion during the Second World War forced him to abdicate in favour of his son, Mohammad Reza Pahlavi.
Iran remained under Allied occupation for much of the war and emerged in 1946 as a constitutional monarchy. Political life briefly expanded, with major forces including the communist Tudeh Party and the National Front led by Mohammad Mosaddegh. Iran's brief tryst with democracy ended in 1953, when Mosaddegh, who had become prime minister and moved to nationalise Iran’s oil industry, was overthrown in a CIA and MI6-backed coup. Mohammad Reza Pahlavi was restored as the dominant ruler.
advertisement
From 1953 to 1979, Mohammad Reza Pahlavi governed as an increasingly autocratic monarch. Oil revenues fuelled rapid economic growth and close ties with the United States and its allies. Major cities modernised quickly, but development remained uneven, and political freedoms were tightly restricted. The Shah's land reforms, Westernisation policies, and repression of dissent through the SAVAK secret police alienated religious leaders, traditional elites, and large sections of society. His extravagant lifestyle, highlighted by the costly 1971 Persepolis celebrations, further fuelled resentment.
Economic decline brought on by declining oil revenues and increased military spending, cultural backlash, and mounting opposition led by the exiled cleric Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini sparked mass protests from 1978.
The monarchy collapsed in 1979, paving the way for the establishment of the Islamic Republic.
The Shah and his family fled Iran, and Mohammad Reza Pahlavi died in exile in Egypt in 1980.
His son, Reza Pahlavi, who is now the crown prince and is living in exile in the United States, is supporting the anti-Ayatollah protestors in Iran.
advertisement
'JAVED SHAH': WHY TABOO SLOGAN NOW RULES THE STREETS OF IRAN?
The Pahlavi dynasty had been overthrown in 1979 as a result of a long-drawn period of unrest and resentment against the Shah. His push for modernity and harsh repression had led to economic inequality, cultural alienation, and united all facets of Iranian society under the religiously driven revolutionary movement led by Khomeini, the Uttar Pradesh-born predecessor of the incumbent Supreme leader.
After 1979, the Pahlavi Dynasty was widely hated, while the newly established Islamic Republic enjoyed popular support.
So what has changed in the last 47 years?
The Islamic Republic of Iran proved to be as repressive, if not more, than the Pahlavi Dynasty it had deposed.
The Ayatollah regime isolated Iran from the rest of the world, which led to the country entering an economic free fall from which it has yet to recover.
The regime's support for terrorist and extremist movements across the Middle East exacerbated the situation as the US and its allies imposed crippling sanctions on the country. The policies cut Iran off from the global economy.
The regime's heavy-handed imposition of Islamic rule and all of its practices has led to incalculable damage to Iran's rich cultural legacy.
Moreover, Iranians are no strangers to resistance and protests.
With the Iranian rial plunging to over 42,000 against the US dollar, and inflation rising to over 42%, the clerical regime of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei is facing the biggest protest in three years.
"Many videos are coming in from Iran, showing people chanting in unison in the streets: 'Mullahs must leave Iran' and 'death to the dictatorship...' This is the voice of a people who do not want the Islamic Republic," Iranian-American journalist and author Masih Alinejad posted on X earlier this week.
The country has witnessed numerous mass protests and uprisings in its history against the most repressive of the Ayatollah's policies, such as the 2009–2010 Iranian presidential election protests, and the 2022–2023 Mahsa Amini protests.
But what makes the latest movement different from all the rest is the massive outpouring of support for the once hated Pahlavi Dynasty.
The slogan which now echoes on the streets of Iranian cities, "Javid Shah", is a call for restoration of what the Iranians had ousted decades ago.
Although the regime of the Ayatollahs has weathered many such protests and uprisings through brutal crackdowns, the question remains if it can this time? But one thing is crystal clear, the Pahlavi Dynasty has emerged as a face and force in the fight of the Iranians against the theocratic regime.
- Ends
No comments:
Post a Comment