Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has publicly acknowledged for the first time that thousands of people were killed during recent mass protests in the country, placing responsibility for the events on the United States and its allies, the BBC’s Russian Service reports.
In a public address, Khamenei said that “individuals linked to Israel and the United States inflicted enormous damage and killed several thousand people.” According to him, protesters set buildings on fire, destroyed public property, and spread chaos across the country.
The Iranian leader also directly accused the U.S. president of involvement in the events. “We consider the U.S. president a criminal, responsible for the casualties, the damage, and the slander against the Iranian people,” Iranian state media quoted Khamenei as saying.
Earlier, U.S. President Donald Trump called on Iranian demonstrators to “continue protesting” and warned Iran’s leadership that Washington could consider military intervention if security forces resorted to mass violence.
According to Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA), a U.S.-based Iranian human rights agency, at least 3,090 people were killed during the harsh crackdown on the protests. Some human rights organizations report significantly higher figures. The ongoing large-scale internet blackout across Iran has made it difficult to obtain reliable information.
In his speech, Khamenei stated that Iran “will show no mercy to internal criminals,” adding that “international criminals will also not escape punishment.” In posts on social media, he further claimed that “America’s goal is to absorb Iran.”
Donald Trump has not yet commented on Khamenei’s remarks. Meanwhile, on January 17, the U.S. State Department said it had received information indicating that Iran was preparing possible strikes against American military bases. U.S. officials warned that any such attack would be met with a “very, very powerful response” and urged Tehran not to “play games with President Trump.”
Large-scale anti-government protests erupted across Iran in late December 2025. According to media reports and human rights groups, Iranian authorities responded with severe measures to suppress the demonstrations.
In recent days, reports of unrest have decreased, but the situation remains unclear due to restricted internet access. According to NetBlocks, Iran’s overall internet connectivity on Saturday was operating at about 2% of its normal level.
