Protests in Iran suppressed amid heavy security, US warnings

Iran’s lethal crackdown on nationwide demonstrations appears to have largely quelled unrest, a rights group and local residents confirmed, even state media reported additional arrests on January 16. The protests, which erupted on December 28 over soaring inflation and economic hardship exacerbated by international sanctions, represent one of the most significant challenges to the clerical regime since the 1979 Islamic Revolution, Reuters reports.

The prospect of a US military strike has diminished since January 14, when President Donald Trump indicated he had been told that killings in Iran were easing. Nevertheless, US forces continue to deploy additional assets to the region, highlighting persistent tensions. Gulf allies, including Saudi Arabia and Qatar, reportedly engaged in intense diplomacy with Washington to avert military action, warning of severe regional consequences. Israel’s intelligence chief David Barnea was in the United States for talks on Iran, with Israeli forces said to be at “peak readiness.”

President Trump and his team warned Tehran of “grave consequences” should the violence continue, keeping “all of his options on the table,” according to the White House.

Residents reported relative calm in Tehran since January 11, with drones observed over the capital but no public protests on January 15 or January 16. The Iran-Kurdish rights group Hengaw noted that “the security environment remains highly restrictive,” citing a heavy military and security presence in cities that had seen unrest. Sporadic violence, however, persisted: Hengaw reported that a female nurse was shot dead by government forces during protests in Karaj, west of Tehran. State media reported rioters set fire to a local education office in Falavarjan County, Isfahan Province.

HRANA, a US-based rights group, puts the death toll at 2,677, including 2,478 protesters and 163 government-affiliated individuals. An Iranian official previously estimated around 2,000 fatalities. Videos verified by Reuters show bodies in a Tehran forensic medical center, though the exact date remains unconfirmed.

By Vafa Guliyeva