At least 10 people have been killed in violence linked to protests across Iran, authorities said Saturday, as demonstrations driven by economic distress continued to spread and drew sharp warnings from the United States.
The latest deaths were reported overnight in two cities, marking an escalation in the weeklong unrest that has affected more than 100 locations across the country, according to a US-based rights group.
In the city of Qom, a grenade explosion killed a man, the state-run IRAN newspaper reported. Security officials were quoted as saying the man was carrying the grenade with the intent to attack people in the city, located about 130 kilometers (80 miles) south of Tehran.
Online videos circulating on social media appeared to show fires burning in the streets of Qom following the blast.
A second death was reported in Harsin, a town in Kermanshah province in western Iran. The newspaper said a member of the Basij — the volunteer wing of Iran’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard — was killed in what it described as a gun and knife attack.
The deaths came a day after US President Donald Trump warned Tehran against using force on demonstrators. “If Iran violently kills peaceful protesters, the United States will come to their rescue,” Trump said Friday.
Iranian officials responded angrily, with senior figures threatening retaliation against American troops stationed in the Middle East. It remains unclear how or whether Washington would intervene.
The Human Rights Activists News Agency said demonstrations have reached 22 of Iran’s 31 provinces, making the current protests the largest since 2022, when the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini in police custody sparked nationwide demonstrations.
Unlike those protests, which were triggered by enforcement of hijab rules, the current unrest has been fueled primarily by economic hardship. Iran’s currency has sharply depreciated, with one US dollar now trading at about 1.4 million rials, officials have acknowledged.
President Masoud Pezeshkian has signaled a willingness to engage with protesters but has conceded limited room to maneuver. “There is not much the government can do,” he has said in recent remarks about the collapsing rial.
Chants against Iran’s theocratic leadership have also been reported at demonstrations, reflecting broader political discontent.
Iran’s economy has struggled in recent months following its June war with Israel, during which the United States also bombed Iranian nuclear sites. Tehran has since said it has halted uranium enrichment at all sites, attempting to signal openness to negotiations aimed at easing sanctions.
Those talks have yet to materialize, as Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu have warned Iran against reviving its nuclear program.
