Several hundreds killed during over two weeks
United States President Donald Trump has said that Washington is considering “strong options” in response to Iran’s crackdown on anti-government protests, including possible military intervention.
“We’re looking at it very seriously. The military is looking at it, and we’re looking at some very strong options. We’ll make a determination,” he told reporters on board Air Force One late on Sunday.
He said Iran’s leadership had called, seeking “to negotiate” after his threats of military action, and that a “meeting is being set up”.
But he added that “we may have to act before a meeting”. There was no immediate comment from Tehran.
Iranian leaders earlier on Sunday issued a stark warning against military intervention, with Parliament Speaker Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf saying: “In the case of an attack on Iran, the occupied territories [Israel] as well as all US bases and ships will be our legitimate target.”
Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian said on Sunday that his government was “ready to listen to” protesters, but urged the public to prevent “rioters” and “terrorist elements” from wreaking havoc.
Unconfirmed reports from across Iran claim that nearly 2000 have been killed though no media could gather factual reports since they are not allowed to operate within Iran.
Sources in Iran have told the BBC the death toll is likely higher than over 500 that is officially reported.
Trump was scheduled to meet with senior advisers on Tuesday to discuss options for Iran, a US official told the Reuters news agency.
The Wall Street Journal reported that options included military strikes, using secret cyberweapons, widening sanctions and providing online help to anti-government sources.
U.S. and other intelligence agencies are struggling to assess whether the current uprising will topple the 47-year-old Islamic Republic, led by Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
INFLATION HITS IRAN
On Monday, the Iranian currency, rial was trading at more than 1.4 million to $1, a sharp decline from around 700,000 a year earlier in January 2025 and around 900,000 in mid-2025. The plummeting currency has triggered steep inflation, with food prices an average of 72 percent higher than last year. Annual inflation is currently around 40 percent.
Iran’s economy is ailing for several reasons. The country fought a 12-day war with Israel in June 2025, which resulted in infrastructural damage in several Iranian cities.