Washington D C: U S President Donald Trump has warned that the United States will take very strong action if Iran proceeds with executing anti-government protesters, as rights groups report that more than 2,400 demonstrators have been killed in a violent crackdown.
The warning comes amid reports that 26-year-old Erfan Soltani, detained last week, could face execution as early as Wednesday. Relatives told BBC Persian that Soltani’s death sentence was issued “in an extremely rapid process, within just two days.” A representative of the Hengaw Organization for Human Rights told the BBC that they “have never witnessed a case move so quickly,” describing it as part of Tehran’s broader efforts to suppress dissent and instill fear.
Speaking to CBS News, Trump said: “If they hang them, you’re going to see some thing We will take very strong action if they do such a thing.” He added that he planned to hold a White House meeting on Tuesday night to review the situation and obtain “accurate numbers” regarding casualties.
U S-based rights group Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA) has confirmed at least 2,403 deaths among protesters, including 12 children, despite an ongoing internet blackout. Nearly 150 individuals affiliated with the government have also been reported killed.
Earlier, Trump posted on his Truth Social platform that Iranian authorities would “pay a big price” for the killings and urged citizens to “keep protesting,” while announcing that he had canceled all meetings with Iranian officials until the violence ceased. Trump has also been considering military and other measures, in addition to recently imposing 25% tariffs on any country trading with Iran.
Iranian officials, meanwhile, have accused the U S of attempting to “manufacture a pretext for military intervention,” calling such actions a repeat of a failed “playbook.”
The protests, which have spread to 180 cities across all 31 provinces, were initially sparked by economic grievances, including the collapse of the national currency and rising living costs. They have since escalated into broader demands for political reform, representing the most significant challenge to the clerical establishment since the 1979 Islamic Revolution.
Authorities have arrested more than 18,434 protesters, according to HRANA, and the government has responded with deadly force amid a near-total internet shutdown. Video footage circulating online shows crowds searching for missing relatives at Tehran’s Kahrizak Forensic Centre, with BBC analysts confirming at least 180 shrouded bodies in one clip and around 50 in another.
Activists described the scene as “piling up bodies from every neighborhood,” highlighting the severity and scale of the crackdown.
