Latest developments in Iran: 45 protesters killed, Trump threatens to strike 'very hard'

Protests in Iran have intensified amid economic hardship, prompting international warnings and deadly domestic crackdowns.

Besides Tehran, more protests had been reported in Qom, Isfahan, Bandar Abbas, Mashhad, Fardis, and Bojnurd.

An X post shows protesters in Isfahan, central Iran, setting on fire the Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting (IRIB) building, though this cannot be independently confirmed amid the news and internet blackout.

President Donald Trump, meanwhile, has threated that the US stands ready to strike "very hard" if Iranian authorities kill protesters, escalating tensions between Washington and Tehran.

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian has urged "utmost restraint" in handling the unrest, even as rights groups report at least 45 protester deaths since the movement began, as per Fox News.

Trump issued his threat on January 9, 2026, via social media, declaring the US "locked and loaded" to intervene if Iran targets peaceful demonstrators.

This follows earlier comments where he reiterated that Iran would "get hit very hard" for protester deaths, amid reports of clashes killing security forces and civilians alike.

The remarks come after US strikes on Iranian nuclear sites last year, heightening fears of broader conflict.

On Thursday (January 8), Germany condemned Iran's use of "excessive force" against protesters, aligning with global concerns over the regime's response.

Iranian state media, meanwhile, announced arrests of alleged foreign-linked "agitators" and seizures of smuggled weapons.

An X post bt @visegrad stated: "Massacre in Iran! Witness says 50+ anti-regime protesters were shot dead. The shooting started after the Islamic regime’s security forces brought in a machine gun mounted on a Toyota in the city of Fardis."

Another social post emerging from Iran indicate that in Fars Province, protesters have overrun and taken control of an IRGC facility, though these reports cannot be independently verified immediately.

Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei acknowledged economic grievances but blamed "external forces" for inciting riots. ​

Iran says the country has put its military on standby, and threatened US bases over Trump's "locked and loaded" protest warning, and "won’t limit its retaliation or wait to be struck first", adding that any threat to its security or territory is a "red line".

Tehran also said that any attack or continued hostile actions will trigger a decisive, proportional response.

A watchdog group reported a nationwide internet blackout on January 9, 2026, as protests spread beyond Tehran to cities like Qom and western regions, limiting information flow and amplifying unrest.

An Iranian rights NGO documented at least 45 protester deaths, with videos showing street fires, gunfire, and tear gas amid economic triggers like hyperinflation and rial devaluation.

Security forces face accusations of lethal tactics, though officials claim some casualties stem from clashes with rioters.

On Wednedsay, new protests erupted in several areas of Iran as President Masoud Pezeshkian ordered security forces not to crack down on demonstrators, drawing a distinction between peaceful protesters and armed "rioters".

Here are the latest developments on the 11th day of a wave of protests in Iranian cities against economic hardship triggered by price rises and currency collapse as per AFP:

According to videos published by rights groups on social media, new protests took place at different points in the country on Wednesday with the streets thronged with protesters in some cases.

Norway-based rights group IHR published a video of people massing in the street of Bojnurd in the northeast of the country shouting slogans including "an Iranian can die but will not accept humiliation".

The Tasnim news agency reported that rioters had attacked a mosque and a shop selling religious books.

Another protest was reported in the upscale Shemiran district of Tehran with protesters shouting "death to the dictator" and "freedom", IHR said.

The US-based HRANA group posted a video of a crowd of people demonstrating in the Gulf port of Bandar Abbas with people shouting slogans including "don't be spectators join us" and "this is the final battle, Pahlavi will come back", referring to the dynasty of the deposed shah.

Large numbers of protesters also took to the streets in Aligudarz in western Iran with people chanting slogans including "this is the year of blood, Seyyed Ali will be toppled" in reference to Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, according to footage broadcast by the Iran International channel, which is based outside of the country.

Iran's Fars news agency, meanwhile, reported deadly clashes in the country's southwest that killed two people and wounded 30.

Fars said that shopkeepers were protesting in Lordergan when "rioters began throwing stones at the police". 

"Among them, there were individuals with military and hunting weapons who suddenly opened fire on the police," the agency added.

It said the two dead were police officers.

Nationwide, protests have spread to 25 of Iran's 31 provinces, according to an AFP tally based on official statements and local media.

In a video released by the news agency Mehr after a cabinet meeting, Vice President Mohammad Jafar Ghaempanah said Pezeshkian had "ordered that no security measures be taken against the demonstrators".

"Those who carry firearms, knives and machetes and who attack police stations and military sites are rioters, and we must distinguish protesters from rioters," Ghaempanah added.

Security forces have now killed at least 27 protesters, including five people under the age of 18, the Norway-based NGO Iran Human Rights (IHR) said on Tuesday.

Iranian media outlets, relaying official announcements, have reported 15 deaths, including members of the security forces and a policeman who was shot dead on Tuesday.

General Amir Hatami, commander of the Iranian army and one of its most senior military officers, warned Tehran would not tolerate outside threats "without responding".

According to Fars, Hatami said "if the enemy makes a mistake" Iran's response would be more robust than during last June's 12-day war with Israel.

In recent days, US President Donald Trump has threatened to intervene in Iran if demonstrators were killed, while Israel's Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has expressed support for the protests.

"We're watching it very closely. If they start killing people like they have in the past, I think they're going to get hit very hard by the United States," Trump told reporters on Sunday.

Netanyahu, meanwhile, told Israel's cabinet: "We stand in solidarity with the struggle of the Iranian people and with their aspirations for freedom, liberty and justice."

Seven Iranian Kurdish opposition parties based in Iraq called for a general strike in Iran on Thursday, a leading official from the Komala Party told AFP.

Hassan Rahmanpanah said the goal was "to demonstrate the unified support of the Kurdish people for the struggle and protests being waged by the Iranian people against the Islamic republic".

The separatist Komala Party, based in exile in Iraqi Kurdistan, is banned by Tehran as a terrorist organisation.

Rahmanpanah accused the Iranian authorities of "brutal and criminal attacks" against demonstrators.

Iran's latest protest movement began on December 28 with a strike by traders in a Tehran market for mobile phones. 

Since then, demonstrations have spread to the heart of the economy, the capital's Grand Bazaar and several more towns and cities, especially in the west of the country.

With inputs from AFP