United States President Donald Trump has disclosed that Iran’s leadership has reached out to his administration to explore negotiations, amid escalating protests that have shaken the Islamic Republic and drawn international concern over a rising death toll.
Speaking to reporters aboard Air Force One on Sunday, Trump said Iranian leaders had made contact following his repeated warnings of possible military intervention should protesters continue to be killed. He indicated that preliminary arrangements were under way for talks, while cautioning that Washington could still act before any formal meeting takes place.
Iran has been gripped by widespread demonstrations for more than two weeks. What began as public anger over the rising cost of living has evolved into a broader challenge to the country’s theocratic order established after the 1979 revolution. Despite an internet shutdown that has restricted information flow, footage from Tehran and other cities has continued to emerge, showing sustained street protests over several nights.
Rights organisations have raised alarm over the scale of the crackdown. The US-based Centre for Human Rights in Iran said it had received credible accounts suggesting that hundreds of protesters may have been killed during the shutdown, warning that the situation amounted to a massacre. The Norway-based Iran Human Rights group confirmed at least 192 deaths but said the real figure could be far higher, with some unverified reports placing the toll at several hundred or even more than 2,000. It also estimated that over 2,600 protesters have been arrested.
Videos circulating online showed bodies wrapped in black bags outside a morgue south of Tehran, with distraught relatives searching for loved ones. An AFP journalist in the capital described a city close to paralysis, with shops closing early and security forces deploying heavily in the evenings. The price of meat has reportedly almost doubled since the unrest began.
While fewer protest videos surfaced on social media on Sunday, it remained unclear whether this reflected a lull in demonstrations or the impact of the internet blackout. One widely shared clip showed protesters regrouping in Tehran’s Pounak district, chanting slogans in support of the ousted monarchy.
The unrest represents one of the most serious challenges yet to Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, 86, coming shortly after a brief war between Israel and Iran in June, backed by the United States. Iranian state television has highlighted images of burning buildings and funerals for security personnel, while officials have sought to project a return to calm. Tehran Governor Mohammad-Sadegh Motamedian claimed that protests were declining.
The government has declared three days of national mourning for those it described as martyrs, including fallen security officers. President Masoud Pezeshkian has called on citizens to participate in a national march to denounce violence.
Iran’s parliament speaker, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, responded sharply to Trump’s threats, warning that US military assets and shipping would be considered legitimate targets if Washington intervened.
Meanwhile, Reza Pahlavi, the US-based son of Iran’s last shah, said he was ready to return home to help steer a democratic transition. He urged security forces and state employees to side with protesters and called on supporters abroad to replace Iranian embassy flags with the pre-revolution national banner, a symbol increasingly seen at solidarity rallies worldwide.
