Protests in Iran Enter Fourteenth Day Amid Casualties, Internet Blackout, and Escalating International Reactions

Protests across Iran have entered their fourteenth consecutive day, intensifying despite a nationwide internet shutdown and a heavy security crackdown. The unrest, which erupted over worsening economic conditions and the sharp depreciation of the Iranian rial, has spread to numerous cities and evolved into the largest challenge to the Islamic Republic in more than three years.

Demonstrations have been reported in Tehran, Mashhad, Tabriz, Qom, and several other major urban centers. In Tehran’s northern Sa’adat Abad district, residents were seen banging pots and chanting slogans against Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, while drivers honked their horns in support, according to videos verified by AFP. Similar scenes were shared on social media and broadcast by Persian-language television channels based outside Iran.

Rising Death Toll and Conflicting Accounts

Reports of casualties have heightened tensions both domestically and internationally. The Times, citing a doctor in Tehran, reported that at least 217 protesters have died in six hospitals in the capital alone, most of them reportedly killed by live ammunition. Iranian authorities have not confirmed these figures but have acknowledged that a number of people, including members of the security forces, have been killed during the unrest.

Iranian officials claim that some of the violence was the result of what they described as “armed terrorist attacks” in several cities, including Tehran. The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) stated that the continuation of the unrest is “unacceptable” and claimed that the responsibility for the bloodshed lies with the planners of these alleged attacks. The IRGC asserted that it reserves the right to take retaliatory action.

Norway-based NGO Iran Human Rights reported that at least 51 protesters, including nine children, have been killed by security forces, revising an earlier toll of 45. Hundreds more have reportedly been injured. Amnesty International condemned the crackdown, saying the authorities are committing “grave human rights violations and crimes under international law” in an attempt to crush the protests.

Internet Shutdown and Human Rights Concerns

As protests continued, authorities imposed a near-total nationwide internet shutdown, now lasting more than 24 hours. Internet monitoring group NetBlocks said the blackout was “masking regime violence” and severely violating the rights of Iranian citizens.

Amnesty International described the shutdown as a deliberate tactic to obscure the true scale of the crackdown and prevent the flow of information from inside the country.

International Reactions and Escalating Rhetoric

The protests have triggered sharp reactions from international leaders. U.S. President Donald Trump warned Iranian officials that the United States would intervene if peaceful protesters were violently suppressed. On Friday, Trump said Iran’s leaders appeared to be “in big trouble” and reiterated an earlier threat of military strikes if protesters were killed.

“It looks to me that the people are taking over certain cities that nobody thought were really possible just a few weeks ago,” Trump said.

Zalmay Khalilzad, former U.S. envoy for peace in Afghanistan, echoed Trump’s warning in a post on X, urging Iranian officials to take the U.S. president’s remarks seriously. He also cautioned Iraq’s leadership against any plans to send militias into Iran.

Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei responded sharply, dismissing Trump’s statements and accusing him of interference. “Trump, like the tyrants of the world, will be overthrown,” Khamenei said, adding that the U.S. president should focus on his own country’s internal problems rather than Iran’s affairs.

Iran’s Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araqchi, speaking in Lebanon, accused the United States and Israel of orchestrating the unrest. Tasnim News Agency quoted him as saying that “the U.S. and Israel are behind the current unrest in Iran.”

Growing Diplomatic Pressure

In a joint statement issued on Friday, the foreign ministers of Australia, Canada, and the European Union strongly condemned Iran’s use of force against protesters. They called on Tehran to “immediately end the use of excessive and lethal force by its security forces.”

“Too many lives—over 40 to date—have already been lost,” the statement said.

A Movement Beyond Economic Grievances

While the protests were initially sparked by anger over rising living costs and economic mismanagement, they have increasingly taken on a political dimension. Demonstrators are now openly calling for an end to the clerical system that has ruled Iran since the 1979 Islamic Revolution, which overthrew the pro-Western shah.

The scale and persistence of the demonstrations recall the 2022–2023 protest movement triggered by the death of Mahsa Amini in police custody, marking another critical moment for Iran’s leadership as domestic unrest and international pressure continue to mount.

 

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