Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has accused the United States and US President Donald Trump of being responsible for the "victims, damages and slander" during the country's recent protests. In a speech on Saturday, Khamenei acknowledged that thousands of people have been killed during the unrest, some of them "inhumanely and barbarically," but attributed the deaths to what he called the activities of "riot instigators."
The protests in Iran have caused, according to the Human Rights Activists Agency in Iran (HRANA), 3,090 deaths since December 28, when they initially erupted over the economic situation and then turned into calls for the end of the supreme leader's rule. The Iranian government has described the demonstrations as "riots" supported by the country's enemies.
Security forces have responded with violence to protesters, with videos showing shots fired into crowds verified by BBC Persian and BBC Verify. Meanwhile, Iran has imposed a near-total internet and communications blackout, with connectivity levels down to around 2% of normal, according to NetBlocks.
For his part, US President Donald Trump has called on Iranian protesters to "keep protesting" and has threatened military intervention if security forces continue the killings. The US State Department said it has information that Iran is considering attacks on US bases, warning that such an action would be met with "very, very strong force".
Trump said he had been told that "the killings in Iran have stopped," but did not rule out military intervention. His comments came as the US and UK reduced the presence of personnel at the Al-Udeid air base in Qatar as a security precaution.
