15 h. ago Iran’s leader says ‘thousands’ killed in protests, Trump a ‘criminal’

Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on Saturday said “several thousand people” died in this month’s anti-government demonstrations, his first acknowledgment of the deadly scale of the unrest. Some of those were killed “brutally and inhumanely”, Khamenei said without offering details in a public meeting broadcast on state TV. He accused the US and Israel of aiding the killings and said the Islamic Republic had evidence to support the claim. Iran did not intend to push the country towards...

Events

31 h. ago Trump thanks Iran for ‘cancelling’ hanging of hundreds of political prisoners

US President Donald Trump took the unusual step on Friday of thanking the Iranian government for not following through on executions of what he said was meant to be hundreds of political prisoners. “Iran cancelled the hanging of over 800 people,” Trump told reporters while leaving the White House to spend the weekend at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Palm Beach, Florida. He added, “and I greatly respect the fact that they cancelled”. The Republican president also suggested on his social media site...

Politics

35 h. ago Iran cleric demands death for protesters, threatens Trump amid unrest

A hardline cleric leading Friday prayers in Iran’s capital demanded the death penalty for protesters detained in a nationwide crackdown and directly threatened US President Donald Trump, showing the rage gripping authorities in the Islamic Republic over demonstrations that have challenged their authority. Ayatollah Ahmad Khatami’s sermon, carried by Iranian state radio, sparked chants from those gathered for prayers, including: “Armed hypocrites should be put to death!” Executions, as well as...

Events

55 h. ago Iran halts hundreds of executions as Gulf allies pull Trump back from strike, US says

The United States on Thursday said Iran halted 800 executions of protesters under pressure from US President Donald Trump, after Gulf allies appeared to pull him back from military action over Tehran’s deadly crackdown on demonstrations. Iran was shaken over the past week by some of the biggest anti-government protests in the history of the Islamic Republic, although the demonstrations appear to have diminished over the past few days in the face of repression and a week-long internet...

Politics

55 h. ago US says Iran halted 800 protester executions after Trump warnings

The United States on Thursday said Iran halted 800 executions of protesters under pressure from President Donald Trump, after Gulf allies appeared to pull him back from military action over Tehran’s deadly crackdown on demonstrations. Iran was shaken over the last week by some of the biggest anti-government protests in the history of the Islamic republic, although the demonstrations appear to have diminished over the last few days in the face of repression and a week-long internet...

Events

3 d. ago Trump claims killing in Iran ‘has stopped’, even as Tehran signals executions ahead

US President Donald Trump on Wednesday made a vague statement that he had been told “on good authority” that plans for executions in Iran have stopped, even as Tehran has indicated fast trials and executions ahead in its crackdown on protesters. The US president’s claims, which were made with few details, come after he told protesting Iranians in recent days that “help is on the way” and that his administration would “act accordingly” to respond to the Iranian government. But Trump has not...

Politics

3 d. ago Trump claims ‘killing in Iran is stopping’, plans for executions halted

US President Donald Trump on Wednesday made a vague statement that he had been told “on good authority” that plans for executions in Iran have stopped, even as Tehran has indicated fast trials and executions ahead in its crackdown on protesters. The US president’s claims, which were made with few details, come after he told protesting Iranians in recent days that “help is on the way” and that his administration would “act accordingly” to respond to the Iranian government. But Trump has not...

Politics

3 d. ago Trump claims ‘killing in Iran is stopping’, but keeps US options open

US President Donald Trump on Wednesday made a vague statement that he had been told “on good authority” that plans for executions in Iran have stopped, even as Tehran has indicated fast trials and executions ahead in its crackdown on protesters. The US president’s claims, which were made with few details, come after he told protesting Iranians in recent days that “help is on the way” and that his administration would “act accordingly” to respond to the Iranian government. But Trump has not...

Politics

3 d. ago Trump envoy says Gaza entering second phase of ceasefire plan, including disarming Hamas

The US said on Wednesday that it is moving into the next phase of a Gaza ceasefire plan that involves disarming Hamas, rebuilding the war-ravaged territory and establishing the group of Palestinian experts that will administer daily affairs in Gaza under American supervision. US President Donald Trump’s envoy Steve Witkoff said in a social media post that the ceasefire deal that the Republican president helped broker was entering its second phase following two years of war between Israel and...

Politics

3 d. ago Gaza entering next ceasefire phase as US pushes to disarm Hamas

The United States said on Wednesday that it was moving into the next phase of a Gaza ceasefire plan that involves disarming Hamas, rebuilding the war-ravaged territory and establishing the group of Palestinian experts that will administer daily affairs in Gaza under American supervision. US President Donald Trump’s envoy Steve Witkoff said in a post on X that the deal that the Republican president helped broker was entering its second phase following two years of war between Israel and Hamas,...

Events

4 d. ago Trump tells Iranians ‘help is on its way’ as protest death toll hits 2,000

The death toll from nationwide protests in Iran spiked on Tuesday to at least 2,003 people killed, activists said, and Iranians made phone calls abroad for the first time in days after authorities severed communications during a crackdown. The number of dead, as reported by the US-based Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA), dwarfs that in any other round of protest or unrest in Iran in decades and recalls the chaos surrounding the country’s 1979 Islamic Revolution. These demonstrations,...

Events

4 d. ago Trump urges on protesters in Iran as crackdown death toll hits 2,000

US President Donald Trump on Tuesday urged Iranians to keep protesting and remember the names of those abusing them, saying help is on the way, as Iran’s clerical establishment pressed its crackdown against the biggest demonstrations in years. Iran in turn accused Trump of encouraging political destabilisation and inciting violence. “Iranian Patriots, KEEP PROTESTING - TAKE OVER YOUR INSTITUTIONS!!! HELP IS ON ITS WAY,” Trump said in a post on Truth Social, without saying what that help might...

Events

4 d. ago Trump urges on protesters in Iran as crackdown death toll passes 2,000

US President Donald Trump on Tuesday urged Iranians to keep protesting and remember the names of those abusing them, saying help is on the way, as Iran’s clerical establishment pressed its crackdown against the biggest demonstrations in years. Iran in turn accused Trump of encouraging political destabilisation and inciting violence. “Iranian Patriots, KEEP PROTESTING - TAKE OVER YOUR INSTITUTIONS!!! HELP IS ON ITS WAY,” Trump said in a post on Truth Social, without saying what that help might...

Events

4 d. ago Trump urges on protesters in Iran as crackdown death toll surges

US President Donald Trump on Tuesday urged Iranians to keep protesting and remember the names of those abusing them, saying help is on the way, as Iran’s clerical establishment pressed its crackdown against the biggest demonstrations in years. Iran in turn accused Trump of encouraging political destabilisation and inciting violence. “Iranian Patriots, KEEP PROTESTING - TAKE OVER YOUR INSTITUTIONS!!! HELP IS ON ITS WAY,” Trump said in a post on Truth Social, without saying what that help might...

Events

5 d. ago As Trump threatens Iran strikes, China denounces use of force in Middle East

China has voiced opposition to the use of force in the Middle East as US President Donald Trump threatened to strike Iran over escalating protests there. Chinese foreign ministry spokeswoman Mao Ning on Monday said Beijing hoped Iran’s government and its people would overcome “current difficulties” and uphold stability in the country. “We always oppose interference in other countries’ internal affairs,” she said at a press conference, responding to a question about Trump’s threats to attack...

Events

5 d. ago China denounces use of force in Middle East as Trump threatens Iran strikes

China denounces use of force in Middle East as Trump threatens Iran strikes  South China Morning Post

Events

8 d. ago Israel says Bulgarian diplomat to direct Trump’s Board of Peace for Gaza

A former UN Middle East envoy has been chosen to direct US President Donald Trump’s Board of Peace to oversee the ceasefire in Gaza, Israel’s prime minister said on Thursday, as at least eight more deaths from Israeli strikes were reported there. The appointment of Bulgarian diplomat Nickolay Mladenov marks an important step forward for Trump’s Middle East peace plan, which has moved slowly since delivering an October ceasefire ending more than two years of fighting between Israel and...

Politics

2 w. ago Trump and Iran official exchange threats after protests turn deadly in the Islamic Republic

US President Donald Trump threatened on Friday to come to the aid of protesters in Iran if security forces fire on them, days into unrest that has left several dead and posed the biggest internal threat to Iranian authorities in years. “We are locked and loaded and ready to go,” he said in a social media post. The United States struck Iranian nuclear facilities in June, joining an Israeli air campaign that targeted Tehran’s atomic programme and military leadership. Top Iranian official Ali...

Events

2 w. ago Trump, Iran official exchange threats after protests turn deadly in the Islamic Republic

US President Donald Trump and top Iranian officials exchanged duelling threats on Friday as widening protests swept across parts of the Islamic Republic, further escalating tensions between the countries after America bombed Iranian nuclear sites in June. At least seven people have been killed so far in violence surrounding the demonstrations, which were sparked in part by the collapse of Iran’s rial currency but have increasingly seen crowds chanting anti-government slogans. The protests, now...

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