Protesters defy crackdown as Iran warns it will retaliate if US attacks

In Iran, protesters defied a government crackdown on Saturday night, taking to the streets despite doctors at two hospitals telling the BBC that more than 100 bodies had been brought in over a two-day period.

Videos verified by the BBC and eyewitness accounts appeared to show the government was stepping up its response.

Iran’s attorney general said anyone protesting would be considered an “enemy of God”, an offense punishable by death.

US President Donald Trump has threatened to hit Iran “very hard” if it “starts killing people”. The speaker of Iran’s Parliament has warned that if the United States attacks Iran, Israel and all American military and maritime bases in the region will become legitimate targets.

The protests were sparked by soaring inflation and have spread to more than 100 cities and towns across all provinces of Iran. Protesters are now demanding an end to the clerical rule of Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

Khamenei called the protesters a “band of vandals” seeking to “please” Trump.

Trump said Saturday that the United States “stands ready to help” as Iran “looks toward FREEDOM.”

As protests intensify, the number of deaths and injuries continues to rise. Two human rights groups reported the deaths of more than 100 people, including members of the security forces.

Staff at several hospitals told the BBC they were overwhelmed with wounded and deadwith BBC Persian checking 70 bodies brought to a hospital in the city of Rasht on Friday evening and a health worker reporting around 38 people died at a Tehran hospital.

Iran’s police chief told state television that the level of confrontation with protesters had intensified, with the arrests Saturday night of what he called “key figures.” He blamed a “significant proportion of deaths” on “trained and directed individuals”, not security forces, but did not give specific details.

More than 2,500 people have been arrested since protests began on December 28, according to a human rights organization.

The BBC and most other international news organizations are unable to report on Iran, and the Iranian government has imposed an Internet shutdown since Thursday, making it difficult to obtain and verify information.

Nonetheless, video footage was released and the BBC spoke to people on the ground.

Several videos, confirmed as recent by BBC Verify, show clashes between protesters and security forces in Mashhad, Iran’s second largest city.

Masked protesters are seen hiding behind trash cans and bonfires, while a line of security forces is visible in the distance. A vehicle that looks like a bus is engulfed in flames.

Several gunshots and what sounds like banging on pots and pans can be heard.

A figure standing on a nearby walkway appears to fire several shots in multiple directions as a few people hide behind a fence.

In Tehran, verified video from Saturday evening shows protesters also taking over the streets of the Gisha neighborhood.

Other verified videos from the capital show a large group of protesters and sounds of banging pots and pans in Punak Square, as well as a crowd of demonstrators marching on a road and calling for an end to religious establishment in the Heravi district.

Internet access in Iran is largely limited to a national intranet, with restricted links to the outside world. But during the current wave of protests, authorities have severely restricted the national intranet for the first time.

An expert told the Persian BBC that the closure was more severe than during the 2022 “Women, Life, Freedom” uprising.

Internet researcher Alireza Manafi said the only likely way to connect to the outside world was via Starlink satellite internet, but warned users to exercise caution because such connections could potentially be traced by the government.

On Saturday, Trump wrote on social media: “Iran is looking towards FREEDOM, perhaps like never before. The United States stands ready to help!!!”

He did not give further details, but US media reported that Trump had been briefed on options for military strikes in the country. The New York Times and Wall Street Journal (WSJ) reported that the briefings took place, with the WSJ describing them as “preliminary discussions.” An anonymous official told the WSJ that there was no “imminent threat” to Iran.

Last year, the United States carried out airstrikes against Iranian nuclear facilities.

Sunday, Reza Pahlavi, the exiled son of the last shah (king) of Iranwho lives in the United States and whose return protesters are demanding, posted a video on X.

His caption read: “Your compatriots around the world proudly shout your voice… In particular, President Trump, as the leader of the free world, has carefully observed your indescribable courage and announced his readiness to help you.”

He added: “I know I will be by your side soon.”

He said the Islamic Republic was facing a “severe shortage of mercenaries” and that “many armed and security forces have left their workplaces or disobeyed orders to suppress the population.” The BBC was unable to verify these claims.

Pahlavi encouraged people to continue protesting Sunday evening, but to stay in groups or with crowds and not “put their lives in danger.”

Amnesty International said it had been analyzing “alarming reports since Thursday that security forces have intensified their unlawful use of lethal force against protesters.”

British Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper said those who speak out against Khamenei’s government should not face “threats of violence or reprisals.”

At least 78 protesters and 38 security forces have been killed in the past two weeks, U.S.-based human rights activists in Iran said.

Iran Human Rights, based in Norway, reported that at least 192 protesters were killed.

The group’s director, Mahmood Amiry-Moghaddam, said: “The killings of protesters over the past three days, particularly following the nationwide internet shutdown, may be even more widespread than we currently imagine. »

The Persian BBC confirmed the identities of 26 people killed, including six children.

These protests are the most widespread since the 2022 uprising sparked by the death in custody of Mahsa Amini, a young Kurdish woman arrested by morality police for allegedly not wearing her hijab properly.

More than 550 people were killed and 20,000 detained by security forces for several months, according to human rights groups.

Additional reporting by Soroush Pakzad and Roja Assadi