Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian has pledged to engage with dissatisfied citizens regarding the country’s deepening economic crisis, even as security forces continue a deadly crackdown that activists say has claimed at least 116 lives.
While the President insisted the government would listen to public concerns, he simultaneously condemned violent demonstrators as “rioters” intent on destroying society, signaling a hardening stance from the administration against the weeks-long unrest.
Okay News reports that the situation has escalated significantly, with over 2,600 people detained and a near-total internet blackout imposed to isolate the country from the global community.
Tensions are further inflamed by the Attorney General’s declaration that protesters are “enemies of God,” while Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf has warned that American and Israeli assets will become legitimate military targets if the United States attempts to intervene.
