<\/a><\/li>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
<\/a><\/p>\n
Amid widespread protests across Iran, President Masoud Pezeshkian made his first televised remarks on the chaos, where he said that officials are willing to listen to protesters, but rioters are trying to \u201cdestroy the entire society."<\/p>\n
\u201cThe people (of Iran) should not allow rioters to disrupt society. The people should believe that we (the government) want to establish justice," he told state broadcaster IRIB. \u201cIf someone who belongs to this country protests, we hear those protests, we listen, and we address them. However, our highest duty is to not allow rioters to come and disrupt the society."<\/p>\n
The Iranian President also accused of Israel and the United States of attempting to destabilising the country. \u201cThe US and Israel are sitting there, giving instructions to these people, telling them: go ahead, we are backing you. The same ones who struck this country and killed our young people and our children are now giving them orders, telling them: you do this work, we are with you," he added.<\/p>\n
Pezeshkian also asserted that Iran will not allow any foreigners to sow seeds of discord among the nation, and no fellow citizen should create chaos inside the country. Targeting US President Donald Trump, Pezeshkian said he should be ashamed of what he is doing in Venezuela, Gaza and elsewhere.<\/p>\n
\u201cFamilies, I ask you: do not allow your young children to join rioters and terrorists who behead people and kill others," Pezeshkian appealed to protesting Iranians.<\/p>\n
Death Toll Crosses 500<\/strong><\/p>\n More than 500 people have believed to have been killed as the protests, which began over economic grievances, turned into a direct challenge to Iran\u2019s clerical leadership. Demonstrations have continued for several nights across multiple cities, drawing growing international attention and concern.<\/p>\n The US-based Human Rights Activists News Agency, which relies on activists in Iran cross-checking information, said it had verified the deaths of 490 protesters and 48 security personnel, with more than 10,600 people arrested in two weeks of unrest.\u00a0State TV aired footage of dozens of body bags on the ground at the Tehran coroner\u2019s office on Sunday, saying the dead were victims of events caused by \u201carmed terrorists", Reuters<\/em> reported.<\/p>\n Several protesters hit the streets in large numbers despite the internet blackout. The US-based Centre for Human Rights in Iran (CHRI) said it had received \u201ceyewitness accounts and credible reports indicating that hundreds of protesters have been killed across Iran during the current internet shutdown".<\/p>\n Iran\u2019s security chief Ali Larijani drew a line between protests over economic hardship, which he called \u201ccompletely understandable", and \u201criots", accusing them of actions \u201cvery similar to the methods of terrorist groups", according to the Tasnim news agency.<\/p>\n Israel Expresses Solidarity With Protesters<\/p>\n Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin\u00a0Netanyahu, speaking during a cabinet meeting, said Israel was closely monitoring developments. \u201cWe all hope that the Persian nation will soon be freed from the yoke of tyranny," he said.<\/p>\n Moreover, Israeli Foreign Minister Gideon Saar said Israel supports the Iranian people in what he described as their \u201cstruggle for freedom" and wished them success. \u201cWe think they deserve freedom\u2026 We don\u2019t have any hostility with the people of Iran," he added. Israel\u2019s military said it was monitoring developments and was ready to respond \u201cwith power if need be".<\/p>\n Iran\u2019s parliament speaker warned the US military and Israel would be \u201clegitimate targets" if America strikes the Islamic Republic, amid repeated threats by US President Trump. Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf directly threatened Israel, \u201cthe occupied territory" as he referred to it, and the US military, possibly with a preemptive strike.<\/p>\n Khameini Hits Back At Trump\u2019s Warning<\/strong><\/p>\n Iran\u2019s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on Sunday took a sharp swipe at Trump, telling him to \u201cmanage his own country" after the American leader said the United States was \u201cready to help" amid escalating anti-government protests.<\/p>\n \u201cThe President of the United States declared that if the Iranian government did this or that, he would side with the rioters. The rioters have placed their hopes in him. If he is so competent, let him manage his own country then," Khamenei wrote.<\/p>\n Trump has spoken out strongly in favour of the protesters and warned Iranian authorities against using deadly force. He has even threatened military action \u201cif they start killing people", a statement that further raised tensions between Washington and Tehran.<\/p>\n (with inputs from agencies)<\/em><\/p>\n tags :Iran President<\/a>Iran protests<\/a><\/a>. Stay updated with the Latest World News and Global developments<\/a>, along with key India News and National updates<\/a>. Explore Politics<\/a>, City News<\/a>, Explainers<\/a>, and Expert Opinions<\/a> on News18. Join the fun, play games on News18<\/a>.\u00a0Download the News18 App<\/a> to stay updated!Tehran, IranJanuary 11, 2026, 18:25 IST world<\/a> Iran's President Blames 'Rioters' As Protest Toll Crosses 500; Israel Supports 'Freedom Struggle' and .<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Iran's President Blames 'Rioters' As Protest Toll Crosses 500; Israel Supports 'Freedom Struggle' Curated By :Aveek BanerjeeNews18.comLast Updated:January 11, 2026, 23:20 ISTI…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":0,"featured_media":7634,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"colormag_page_container_layout":"default_layout","colormag_page_sidebar_layout":"default_layout","footnotes":""},"categories":[108],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-7633","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-times-of-india"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/wp1.niviyo.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7633","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/wp1.niviyo.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/wp1.niviyo.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wp1.niviyo.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=7633"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/wp1.niviyo.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/7633\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wp1.niviyo.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/7634"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/wp1.niviyo.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=7633"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wp1.niviyo.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=7633"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wp1.niviyo.in\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=7633"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}