Friday January 2, 2026
www.thenewsdesk.ng
The United States, US President Donald Trump has warned that the US was “locked and loaded” to respond if Iranian authorities kill protesters after cost-of-living protests in Iran turned deadly.
The demonstrations, which began on Sunday, December 28, 2025, in Tehran, were sparked by rising prices, economic stagnation and the sharp decline in the Iranian currency. The protests soon spread to other cities.
On Thursday, January 1, 2026, clashes between demonstrators and security forces reportedly left at least six people dead, the first confirmed fatalities since the unrest escalated.
Reacting to the situation, Trump said on his Truth Social platform on Friday that, “if Iran shoots and violently kills peaceful protesters, which is their custom, the United States of America will come to their rescue.”
“We are locked and loaded and ready to go,” Trump added.
Iran’s semiofficial Fars news agency reported that two people were killed in clashes between protesters and security forces in the city of Lordegan, in Chaharmahal and Bakhtiari province, while three others died in Azna, in neighbouring Lorestan province.
Earlier, Iranian state television also announced that a member of the country’s Basij volunteer force was killed overnight amid protests in the western city of Kouhdasht.
