Iran’s military chief, Gen. Amir Hatami, has warned that the country will not remain passive in the face of external threats, following vocal support from the United States and Israel for anti-government protests.
“The Islamic Republic of Iran considers the escalation of hostile rhetoric against the Iranian nation a threat and will not tolerate its continuation without responding,” Hatami said, according to Iran’s Fars news agency. He added that if “the enemy makes a mistake,” Iran’s response would be “more robust” than during last June’s 12-day conflict with Israel.
The warning comes amid growing unrest caused by economic hardship, soaring prices, and the collapse of the rial. On December 28, merchants in Tehran protested against inflation, sparking similar demonstrations in several other cities. Rights groups report that several protesters were shot dead last Saturday in the Malekshahi district of Ilam province.
In recent days, former US President Donald Trump threatened American intervention if Iranian demonstrators are killed. “We’re watching it very closely. If they start killing people like they have in the past, I think they’re going to get hit very hard by the United States,” Trump told reporters.
Israel has also voiced support for the protests. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said: “We stand in solidarity with the struggle of the Iranian people and with their aspirations for freedom, liberty, and justice.”
At the same time, Iran’s civilian leadership has signalled restraint. President Masoud Pezeshkian ordered security forces not to crack down on peaceful economic protests. Vice President Mohammad Jafar Ghaempanah clarified that Pezeshkian had “ordered that no security measures be taken against the demonstrators,” while emphasising that violent actors would be treated differently: “Those who carry firearms, knives, and machetes and attack police stations or military sites are rioters. We must distinguish protesters from rioters.”
Iran’s foreign ministry has accused Trump and Netanyahu of inciting violence and attempting to undermine national unity. Officials say the situation remains under close watch as demonstrations continue, though the protests have not yet reached the scale of past movements in 2009 or 2022–2023.
The tensions occur against the backdrop of last June’s conflict, which began with Israeli strikes on Iranian military and nuclear facilities, followed by limited US attacks on three major Iranian nuclear sites — a context Iranian officials say underlines the seriousness of their current warnings.
