US President Donald Trump has claimed that “very important sources” have assured him that Iranian authorities have halted the killing of protesters and will not carry out planned executions. Speaking at the White House, Trump said: “They’ve said the killing has stopped and the executions won’t take place.” He added that the US would “watch it and see” regarding threatened military action.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi subsequently told Fox News that “hanging is out of the question” and that he was “confident that there is no plan for hanging”. Meanwhile, the family of Erfan Soltani, the first protester sentenced to death since the unrest began, was informed that his execution had been postponed.
The British embassy in Tehran has been temporarily closed as a precaution, with some US and UK personnel evacuated from sites across the Middle East. Spain, Italy and Poland also advised their citizens to leave Iran, following a US call for its nationals to depart. Iran reopened its airspace after a near-five-hour closure that disrupted flights.
The death toll from the regime’s crackdown stands at 2,571, according to the US-based Human Rights Activists news agency, with more than 18,100 arrests. The G7 foreign ministers said they were “prepared to impose additional restrictive measures” over Iran’s handling of the protests, citing “deliberate use of violence, the killing of protesters, arbitrary detention and intimidation tactics”.
Trump also commented on Iranian opposition figure Reza Pahlavi, calling him “very nice” but expressing doubt about his ability to gain support within Iran. The United Nations Security Council is scheduled to meet on Thursday for a briefing on the situation, requested by the US.
