According to an Iranian official, at least 5,000 people died in the protests that swept Iran, including 500 security personnel.
This figure represents the highest death toll officially acknowledged by a government source regarding the nationwide protests that destabilized Iran’s establishment and nearly prompted U.S. intervention.
The official, speaking to Reuters, attributed the high casualty numbers to “Israel and armed groups abroad,” and indicated that the government’s official tally was not expected to increase significantly.
The demonstrations began in Tehran on December 28 after Iran’s currency, the rial, collapsed. They rapidly escalated into a widespread movement demanding the removal of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
The government crackdown commenced with an internet shutdown on January 8, throwing the country into information darkness and hindering humanitarian organizations and governments from assessing the full scale of the violence.
Human rights organizations report that security forces killed protesters in large numbers. IHR estimates that over 20,000 individuals have been detained in relation to the demonstrations during the blackout period.
The internet blackout has complicated efforts to establish an accurate death count, as humanitarian groups face difficulties contacting sources on the ground. However, as of last week, an informal network of academics and medical professionals reported that protester fatalities between January 8 and January 10 alone may have reached 6,000.
In a video statement on Saturday, Khamenei acknowledged that “thousands” had perished in the protests, “some in an inhuman, savage manner.” He held the United States and President Donald Trump responsible for the devastation, labeling Trump a “criminal.”
“We will not plunge the country into war, but we will not allow domestic or international criminals to escape punishment,” Khamenei stated.
Trump has suggested in recent days that he nearly approved military strikes against Iran in response to the crackdown. He spent much of last week issuing threats to Iranian leaders if the suppression continued, and on January 13 stated that “help is on its way.”
He was reportedly weighing military options to attack Iran on Tuesday, but by Friday seemed to have abandoned the idea after claiming that Iran had called off approximately 800 planned executions of protesters.
“The best decision he ever made was not hanging more than 800 people two days ago,” Trump said regarding Iran’s Supreme Leader in an interview on Saturday.
However, during the same interview, Trump expressed anger over Khamenei’s comments attributing responsibility for the high death toll in Iran to him.
“It’s time to seek new leadership in Iran,” he declared.
Trump asserted that Khamenei “should concentrate on properly managing his country, as I do with the United States, rather than killing thousands of people to maintain control.”
It remains uncertain whether Trump is still contemplating military action against Iran. Several sources reported on Friday that the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln was en route to the Middle East and expected to arrive in about one week.