Nationwide protests challenging Iran’s theocracy continued into Sunday in Tehran and the country’s second-largest city, Mashhad, crossing the two-week mark as violence linked to the demonstrations has killed at least 116 people, activists said.
With internet services cut and phone lines largely shut down, monitoring the protests from abroad has become increasingly difficult. However, the U.S.-based Human Rights Activists News Agency reported that the death toll has continued to rise, while at least 2,600 people have been detained.
Amid the unrest, Iran’s parliament speaker warned that the U.S. military and Israel would be considered “legitimate targets” if America attacks the Islamic Republic, following threats by President Donald Trump. Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf made the warning as lawmakers rushed the dais in parliament, chanting: “Death to America!”
Observers abroad fear that the information blackout could embolden hard-liners within Iran’s security forces to carry out a violent crackdown, despite Trump’s warning that he is willing to strike Iran to protect peaceful demonstrators.
Trump voiced support for the protesters on social media, writing that “Iran is looking at FREEDOM, perhaps like never before. The USA stands ready to help!!!” The New York Times and The Wall Street Journal, citing anonymous U.S. officials, reported Saturday night that Trump had been presented with military options for a strike on Iran, but had not yet made a final decision.
The U.S. State Department also issued a warning, saying: “Do not play games with President Trump. When he says he’ll do something, he means it.”
Parliament rallies
Iranian state television broadcast the parliamentary session live. Qalibaf, a hard-liner and former presidential candidate, delivered a speech praising police and Iran’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard, particularly its volunteer Basij force, for having “stood firm” during the protests.
“The people of Iran should know that we will deal with them in the most severe way and punish those who are arrested,” Qalibaf said.
He went on to directly threaten Israel, which he referred to as “the occupied territory,” as well as the U.S. military, raising the possibility of preemptive action.
“In the event of an attack on Iran, both the occupied territory and all American military centers, bases and ships in the region will be our legitimate targets,” Qalibaf said. “We do not consider ourselves limited to reacting after the action and will act based on any objective signs of a threat.”
It remains unclear how serious Iran is about launching a strike, particularly after its air defenses were badly damaged during the 12-day war with Israel in June. Any decision to go to war would rest with Iran’s 86-year-old Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
The U.S. military has said its forces in the Middle East are positioned “across the full range of combat capability to defend our forces, our partners and allies and U.S. interests.” Iran targeted U.S. forces at Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar in June, while the U.S. Navy’s 5th Fleet is based in Bahrain.
Israel is also closely monitoring the situation. An Israeli official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu spoke overnight with U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio on issues including Iran.
Protests in Tehran and Mashhad
Videos circulating online, likely transmitted via Starlink satellite connections, showed demonstrators gathering in Tehran’s northern Punak neighborhood. Authorities appeared to have blocked streets as protesters waved lit mobile phones, banged on metal and set off fireworks.
Other footage showed demonstrators marching peacefully and drivers honking car horns in support.
“The pattern of protests in the capital has largely taken the form of scattered, short-lived and fluid gatherings, shaped by the heavy presence of security forces and increased field pressure,” the Human Rights Activists News Agency said. It added that surveillance drones and security deployments around protest sites indicated ongoing monitoring.
In Mashhad, around 725 kilometers northeast of Tehran, footage showed protesters confronting security forces, with burning debris and overturned dumpsters blocking roads. Mashhad is home to the Imam Reza shrine, the holiest site in Shiite Islam, giving the protests there particular significance for Iran’s theocracy.
Protests were also reported in Kerman, about 800 kilometers southeast of Tehran.
Iranian state television on Sunday sent correspondents to various cities to show calm streets, displaying date stamps on screen. Tehran and Mashhad were not included. The broadcaster also aired images of pro-government demonstrations in Qom and Qazvin.
Ali Larijani, a senior security official, appeared on state television accusing some demonstrators of “killing people or burning some people, which is very similar to what ISIS does.” State TV also aired funerals of slain security personnel and reported that six more had been killed in Kermanshah.
More demonstrations planned
Iran’s exiled Crown Prince Reza Pahlavi, who called for protests on Thursday and Friday, urged demonstrators to return to the streets on Sunday. He asked protesters to carry Iran’s old lion-and-sun flag and other national symbols from the era of the shah to “claim public spaces as your own.”
Pahlavi’s ties with Israel have drawn criticism in the past, particularly after last year’s 12-day war. While some protesters have chanted in support of the shah, it remains unclear whether this reflects backing for Pahlavi or simply nostalgia for the period before the 1979 Islamic Revolution.
The protests began on Dec. 28 following the collapse of the Iranian rial, which is now trading at more than 1.4 million to the dollar, as the economy suffers under international sanctions linked in part to Iran’s nuclear program. The demonstrations have since intensified into a broader challenge to Iran’s theocratic system.