The situation in Iran is “under complete control” following an increase in violence linked to protests over the weekend, the country’s Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi said on Monday (12), via translation into English.
Araqchi added that US President Donald Trump’s warning against Tehran that measures would be taken if protests turn bloody motivates “terrorists” to attack protesters and security forces, with the aim of attracting foreign intervention.
Iran has been experiencing a wave of protests that spread across the country two weeks ago, and at least 10,600 people have been arrested, according to the US-based human rights group HRANA.
Authorities intensify repression
The protests began on December 28 in response to rising inflation in the country, before turning against religious rulers who have been in power since the 1979 Islamic Revolution.
Iranian authorities accuse the US and Israel of fomenting instability and have called for a nationwide demonstration on Monday to condemn “terrorist actions led by the United States and Israel” in Iran, state media reported.
The flow of information from Iran has been hampered by an internet blockade since Thursday (8).
Images released on social media on Saturday (10), coming from Tehran, showed large crowds marching down a street at night, cheering and singing. The crowd “has no beginning or end,” a man is heard saying.
In images from the city of Mashhad, in the northeast of the country, it is possible to see smoke rising into the night sky, coming from fires in the streets, masked protesters and a road covered in debris, as shown in another video released on Saturday. Explosions can also be heard.
Reuters confirmed the locations.
State TV showed dozens of body bags on the floor of Tehran’s Forensic Medical Institute, claiming the dead were victims of events caused by “armed terrorists”, as well as images of family members gathered outside Tehran’s Kahrizak Forensic Medical Center waiting to identify the bodies.
Three Israeli sources, present at Israeli security consultations over the weekend, stated that Israel is on high alert for the possibility of any American intervention.
An Israeli military official said the protests were an internal Iranian issue but that Israel’s military was monitoring developments and ready to respond “with force if necessary.”
