Trump floats military action over Iran protests as pressure campaign widens

United States President Donald Trump has said Washington is weighing “strong options” in response to Iran’s crackdown on anti-government protests, including possible military intervention, as unrest deepens inside the country and tensions rise across the region.

“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,” Trump told reporters aboard Air Force One late on Sunday.

Trump said Iran’s leadership had reached out seeking “to negotiate” after his public threats, adding that “a meeting is being set up”. But he also left little doubt that diplomacy could be overtaken by force. “We may have to act before a meeting,” he said.

There was no immediate response from Tehran. Earlier on Sunday, Iranian officials issued their own warning. Parliament Speaker Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf said any attack on Iran would trigger a regional response.

“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,” Qalibaf said.

The protests began on December 28 after merchants in Tehran’s Grand Bazaar shut their shops over the collapsing value of the rial. What started as anger over economic hardship quickly spread nationwide, with demonstrations expanding into broader opposition to Iran’s clerical establishment, which has ruled since the 1979 Islamic Revolution.

Iranian state media says at least 109 members of the security forces have been killed. Opposition activists outside the country say the toll is far higher and includes hundreds of protesters.

Authorities have also imposed a nationwide internet blackout that has lasted more than 72 hours, according to monitoring groups, cutting off most communication with the outside world.

President Masoud Pezeshkian struck a mixed tone on Sunday, saying his government was “ready to listen to” protesters while warning against “rioters” and “terrorist elements”.

Speaking to the IRIB state broadcaster, Pezeshkian accused Israel and the United States, which fought a 12-day war against Iran last June, of orchestrating the unrest. “The same people that struck this country,” he said, were now “trying to escalate these unrests with regard to the economic discussion”.

The Iran crisis is unfolding as Trump pursues an increasingly confrontational foreign policy on multiple fronts. In recent weeks, his administration abducted Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, openly discussed taking control of Venezuela’s oil industry, and revived plans to acquire Greenland by purchase or force.

A US official told Reuters that Trump was scheduled to meet senior advisers on Tuesday to discuss options on Iran. According to The Wall Street Journal, those options range from military strikes and cyber operations to tougher sanctions and online support for opposition groups.

Trump also said he plans to speak with billionaire Elon Musk about restoring internet access in Iran.

“He’s very good at that kind of thing, he’s got a very good company,” Trump said, when asked whether he would involve Musk’s SpaceX and its Starlink satellite internet service, which has previously been used in Iran.

Alongside Iran, Trump used the flight to reiterate his ambitions elsewhere. He confirmed he would meet Venezuelan opposition leader Maria Corina Machado in the coming days and again promised that oil companies investing in Venezuela would be protected.

“There are guarantees they’re going to be safe,” he said. “They had problems in the past because they didn’t have Trump as president. They had stupid people.”

On Greenland, Trump again called on the Danish Arctic territory to “make a deal”, insisting the US is seeking permanent control, not a temporary arrangement.

“We are talking about acquiring it, not making a short term deal,” he said.

Repeating unproven claims, Trump said China and Russia had deployed “destroyers and submarines all over the place” near Greenland and mocked the territory’s defences as consisting of “two dogsleds”.

“If we don’t do it, Russia or China will,” Trump said. “I’m not letting that happen… one way or another we’re going to have Greenland.”