The United States is considering “very strong“ options against Iran in response to the protests sweeping the country and the deaths of protesters, US President Donald Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One.
Trump did not rule out the use of military force. “We are considering that option“, he said in response to a question on the subject.
The Speaker of the Iranian Parliament, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, said earlier that if Israel or the US struck Iran, both Israeli facilities and US military centers, bases and ships in the region would become legitimate targets for Tehran. Commenting on this, Trump threatened: “If they do that, we will hit them like they have never been hit before. If they do, they will face a very serious force.“
The US president also suggested sending Starlink terminals to Iran to expand internet access after local authorities imposed restrictions. “We can talk about it with Elon Musk“, Trump noted.
On January 2, the US president announced Washington's readiness to intervene if the protests in Iran, which began in late December, are suppressed by force.
According to the Iranian human rights organization HRANA (Human Rights Activists Information Agency), quoted by Reuters, by January 11, 490 protesters and 48 security personnel had been killed in the unrest. In addition, more than 10,000 protesters had been arrested. According to Iran's state-run Tasnim news agency, 109 security personnel have been killed in the unrest.
Trump is considering a range of possible actions against Iran in response to the mass protests sweeping the country, CNN and NBC sources told US officials.
According to these sources, Trump has been presented with several preliminary plans of action in recent days, ranging from possible strikes to options that do not involve military action. CNN sources told NBC that the options involving the use of force include strikes against Iranian security forces. However, the administration fears that such actions could "unintentionally rally the Iranian people in support of the government" or force Iran to respond with its own military force, CNN reported.
Trump is also considering actions against the Iranian government that do not involve military strikes, sources told the channel. Those options include cyberattacks on Iranian military or government facilities, which one official said could undermine efforts to quell the protests.
Preliminary plans also include imposing new sanctions on Iranian politicians or economic sectors such as energy and banking. Washington is also exploring the possibility of providing technology, such as Starlink, to expand internet access in Iran after local authorities imposed restrictions, as previously reported by The Wall Street Journal (WSJ).
CNN sources say Trump is considering various options targeting the Iranian government because he “hopes to fulfill his promise to help protesters in the country“.
British ministers are exploring ways to change the law to ban Iran's Revolutionary Guard, a cabinet minister said during a brutal crackdown in Iran in which nearly 500 protesters are said to have been killed. There were also protests on the streets of London.
Heidi Alexander, the transport secretary, said there were "gaps in the law" which meant the Iranian Revolutionary Guard could not be banned in the same way as groups such as "Palestinian Action". Ministers have faced repeated calls to ban the powerful wing of the Iranian regime.
Civil rights groups have said the Iranian Revolutionary Guard has tried to suppress protests in Iran with live ammunition, tear gas and mass arrests. Western intelligence agencies have accused the Iranian Revolutionary Guard of running covert operations in Britain, including surveillance of dissidents, intimidation campaigns and planned kidnappings. The corps also plays a central role in funding militant groups including "Hamas" and "Hezbollah".
Meanwhile, thousands of people took to the streets of London on Sunday in support of the protests in Iran. They gathered outside the Iranian embassy and marched to the British government complex. There, they called on the Labour Party to close the embassy, calling it a "terror factory". Footage showed protesters throwing objects at the building and burning effigies of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.