Iran, at least 2,000 dead. Trump weighs attack options. Pezeshkian: US and Israel sow chaos

The death toll in Iran has risen to at least 538 in the repression of anti-government protests that have been going on since 28 December. This was reported by the Human Rights Activists News Agency (Hrana), a US-based group, adding that more than 10,600 people have been arrested. According to Hrana, 490 of those killed are protesters and 48 members of the security forces, and the toll is expected to worsen.

''We want to put an end to the Iranian regime'' for ''the good of the whole world'' and ''we want to establish good relations with Israel''. This was stated by the eldest son of the last Shah of Persia, Reza Pahlavi, in an interview with Fox News as protests continue in Iran.

"As the repression intensifies and the loss of innocent lives continues, we are closely monitoring the situation. Europe stands by the Iranian people in their legitimate fight for freedom". Thus on X the President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen.

Donald Trump will receive a briefing on Tuesday on options for responding to Iran's crackdown on protests. US officials told the Wall Street Journal. The meeting between the US president and senior administration officials will focus on next steps, which could include cyber attacks against Iranian military and civilian sites, the imposition of further sanctions on the regime in Tehran, but also military strikes, officials said

The number of people killed in the protests in Iran rises to 466, the US-based Human Rights Activists News Agency (Hrana) says, quoted by international media.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has summoned his top advisors and ministers for security consultations at 5pm. This was reported to the Times of Israel by the offices of two of the participants. A meeting of the entire security cabinet is scheduled for Tuesday instead. The meetings are being held amid rising tensions in Iran and after Iranian threats to attack Israel if the US strikes the Islamic Republic.

At least 3,280 people have been arrested in Iran in connection with anti-government protests, which have been going on since 28 December. This was reported by the US-based NGO Human Rights Activists News Agency (Hrana), a group that relies on activists in Iran to verify information and has in the past provided accurate data in previous rounds of protests in the country. In its latest toll, Hrana reported that the confirmed dead rose to 203, including 162 protesters and 41 members of the security forces, but that it is feared that the figures are actually much higher.

IDF Chief of Staff Eyal Zamir stated that the army remains "operationally prepared and ready to respond if necessary" following Iranian threats to attack US and Israeli targets. This was reported by the Times of Israel. Zamir reportedly made assessments over the weekend in light of the protests in Iran and that in any case, the IDF treats the growing anti-regime demonstrations as an internal Iranian matter.

"We have always and never before stood alongside the democratic movements that have been demonstrating for days in Iran and abroad, the many women and young people who are showing courage, determination and a desire for freedom". This was stated by PD secretary Elly Schlein in a note. "We look at these events with deep solidarity and admiration for the courage of the protesters who defy the Iranian regime's crude repression. There is great apprehension about the arrests, the attacks on protesters, the many killings already reported, and we condemn the blocking of the internet to prevent the world from seeing their crimes, an unprecedented measure that shows the deep crisis of the regime. It is now time for Europe and the international community to concretely express their solidarity through the highest possible level of diplomatic action and dialogue with neighbouring countries to cut off any form of support for the regime, which is guilty of very serious human rights violations, for which it must be held accountable. We strongly support the protests of the Iranian people and their strong aspiration for freedom,' he concludes.

The toll of protesters killed in protests in Iran has risen again. According to the Norway-based NGO Iran Human Rights, at least 192 people have been killed, more than double the 51 on Friday. However, the dead could be many more, considering the scarcity of information filtering in about the situation in the country, due to the interruptions to telephone lines and the Internet, which has now lasted for over 60 hours. The New York-based Centre for Human Rights in Iran said it had received "direct testimony and credible reports" on the deaths of hundreds of protesters in recent days. In the morning, the US-based Human Rights Activists News Agency had reported a death toll of 116, including 37 members of the security forces or other officials. "A massacre is taking place in Iran. The world must act now to prevent further loss of life,' the organisation wrote, adding that hospitals are 'overcrowded', blood supplies are dwindling, and many protesters have been deliberately hit in the eyes by bullets.

Israel and the US 'order insurgents to create instability in Iran', says Iranian president

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said on Sunday that the US and Israel have been 'sowing chaos and disorder' in Iran since the 12-day war - in which Israel attacked military infrastructure belonging to the Iranian regime - by inciting 'riots', and called on Iranians to distance themselves from 'rioters and terrorists'.

Speaking at the start of the cabinet meeting, Israeli Prime Minister Benyamin Netanyahu said that Israel and Iran will become partners again after the fall of the regime in Tehran. "We are conveying strength to the heroic and courageous citizens of Iran, and once the regime falls, we will do good together for the benefit of both peoples," he was quoted by the Times of Israel as saying. "We all hope that the Persian nation will soon be freed from the yoke of tyranny," Netanyahu continued. "And when that day comes, Israel and Iran will once again become faithful partners in building a future of prosperity and peace."

'It is necessary to distinguish between protests and riots'. This was stated by Ali Larijani, secretary of Iran's National Security Council, adding that the initial protests against the growing economic difficulties were 'completely understandable', but later 'a destructive and organised current that has no connection with the economic demands of the population has entered the scene'. The judiciary should 'decisively tackle those who cause insecurity', he was quoted by Sky News as saying. Yesterday, Iran's attorney general threatened protesters with the death penalty.

"My thoughts turn to what is happening these days in the Middle East, particularly in Iran and Syria, where persistent tensions are causing the deaths of many people. I hope and pray that dialogue and peace will be cultivated with patience, pursuing the common good of the whole of society". The Pope said this at the Angelus.

In recent days, US President Donald Trump has been briefed on various options for a military strike on Iran, including attacks on non-military sites in Tehran. The New York Times writes this. Trump has reportedly not yet made a final decision on the attack. However, officials said he would seriously consider authorising an attack in response to the Iranian regime's attempts to suppress demonstrations triggered by widespread economic tensions.

"At least 192 people" have been killed in a fortnight of protests against the government in Iran, the human rights organisation Iran Human Rights claims. "Since the start of the protests, Iran Human Rights has confirmed the killing of at least 192 protesters," the Norway-based NGO said, warning that the tally could be much higher as an internet blackout that has lasted for days hinders verification.

US President Donald Trump has been presented with military options for a possible attack on Iran in response to the crackdown on protests, but has not yet made a final decision. This was reported by the New York Times (Nyt) and the Wall Street Journal (Wsj). Yesterday Trump, in a post on his social Truth, offered his support to the protesters protesting in Iran since 28 December: 'Iran is looking at FREEDOM, perhaps like never before. The US is ready to help!!!," he wrote.

Robina Aminian, a 24-year-old Kurdish student from Tehran's Shariati Technical University, originally from Nowdesheh in the province of Kermanshah, was killed by gunfire directed by Iranian government forces during protests in Tehran. This was reported by No One Touch Cain citing information obtained by the Hengaw Organisation for Human Rights, according to which the incident took place on Thursday, 8 January.

Sardar Radan, commander-in-chief of the Iranian National Police, said this morning that 'the level of confrontation with the rioters has increased' and celebrated what he called 'important arrests', stressing that 'the main elements of last night's riots have been arrested'. Sky News reports.

Iran warns US President Donald Trump that "any US attack would lead Tehran to retaliate against Israel and US military bases" in the region, calling them "legitimate targets". This was said by the Speaker of the Iranian Parliament, Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf, addressing MPs.

The number of people killed in protests in Iran has almost doubled in just a few hours, from 65 dead to at least 116, according to the latest update from the US-based NGO Human Rights Activists News Agency. Sky News reports this, adding that seven of the victims are minors. Most of the people were killed by live ammunition or pellet gunfire, mostly from close range, says the NGO, according to which 37 of the victims are members of the armed or security forces, while one of them is a prosecutor. Hrana also reported that 2,638 people were arrested.

Iranian women living abroad lighting up cigarettes with a flaming picture of Ayatollah Khamenei. It is the new protest that is quickly making the rounds on social media relayed by various international media including the Daily Mail. The British newspaper explains that smoking for women is strongly disapproved of in Iran, while burning the photo of the country's leader is a crime. A particularly viral video was shot by an Iranian woman living in Toronto. All the authors of the protest are not wearing headscarves.

The internet blockade in Iran, imposed following the anti-government protests remains in place and has now lasted for over 60 hours, Netblocks estimates. "The censorship measure poses a direct threat to the security and well-being of Iranians at a key moment for the country's future," the monitor writes on X, adding that the blackout "has now exceeded 60 hours".

Israel is on high alert for the possibility of US intervention in Iran, where anti-government protests are flaring up, Reuters online writes, citing three informed Israeli sources. The sources, who were present at Israeli security consultations over the weekend, did not give details on what Israel's high alert status actually means. Yesterday, Israeli Prime Minister Benyamin Netanyahu and US Secretary of State Marco Rubio discussed the possibility of US intervention in Iran, according to an Israeli source present at the conversation.

Further reading

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11 January 2026

For newspapers and regime television, nothing is happening. No protest demonstrations: the continuously broadcast images of quiet squares prove it. This is the behaviour of regimes in crisis: denying reality when it is happening. In 2003, the Information Minister of Saddam Hussein, later nicknamed 'Comical Ali', announced the defeat of the Americans while behind him pictures showed the entry of Marines into Baghdad.

But the Iran of today is not the Iraq of then. It is difficult to attempt comparisons to establish resilience or imminent collapse, when such a complex regime and country are clearly in crisis. Perhaps some Iranian similarities are possible with the events that took place at the beginning of this year: but only because Venezuela has become a paradigm of the present international chaos; and everything that Donald Trump does or threatens to do, are exportable hypotheses in every geopolitical chessboard, from the Caribbean to the Arctic, to the Strait of Hormuz.

On Saturday night, anti-government slogans filled the streets of the Iranian capital Tehran, as protesters incited the largest movement against the Islamic republic in three years, despite a strong crackdown under the cover of an Internet blackout, Afp reported. Iran blamed the United States for the demonstrations that broke out a fortnight ago in the capital due to economic difficulties and have since been fuelled across the country with calls for the ouster of religious authorities. Human rights groups reported dozens of deaths and, on Saturday, expressed concern about the intensification of repression by the authorities. Little information has filtered in since the Internet blockade, with NetBlocks monitors showing virtually zero connectivity since Thursday.

Iran's attorney general, Mohammad Movahedi Azad, warned that anyone participating in protests in the Islamic republic would be considered an 'enemy of God', a crime punishable by death. The statement, broadcast on Iranian state television, said that anyone who 'helped the rioters' will also be charged with the same offence.

"The prosecutors must carefully and without delay prepare, through the issuance of indictments, the basis for trial and for a decisive confrontation with those who, by betraying the nation and creating insecurity, seek foreign domination over the country," the statement reads, "Proceedings must be conducted without leniency, compassion or clemency."

The fires in the middle of the streets, the chants and slogans of 'death to Khamenei' and 'long live the Shah'. Despite the Internet blackout and a toll of dozens of deaths and thousands of arrests, the Iranian people do not stop. And they are returning to the streets to carry on a protest now in its fourteenth day, which in terms of numbers and scope is unprecedented in the last three years. With some analysts beginning to speak of a "revolution" - a word with a strong political and symbolic weight in the Islamic Republic born from a revolution in the 1970s - as if to underline that "this time it is different" from previous mobilisations. So much so that the regime has decided to up the ante by threatening the gallows for all rioters as "enemies of God", while Iran's Supreme Guide Ali Khamenei has placed the Pasdaran on an even higher state of alert than that adopted for the 12-day war with Israel in June 2025.