Army warning as Iran seeks to quell growing unrest

The Iranian army is vowing to safeguard strategic infrastructure and public property and is urging Iranians to thwart "the enemy's plots" as the clerical establishment steps up efforts to quell the country's biggest protests in years.

The Iranian military statement came after US President Donald ‍Trump issued a new warning to Iran's leaders and after Secretary of State Marco Rubio declared: "The United States supports the brave people of Iran."

Unrest continued overnight. State media said a municipal building was set on fire ​in Karaj, west of Tehran, and blamed "rioters".

State TV broadcast footage of funerals of members of the security forces it said were killed in protests in the cities of Shiraz, Qom and Hamedan.

Authorities continued to impose an ⁠internet blackout.

A witness in western Iran reached by phone said the Revolutionary Guards (IRGC) were deployed and opening fire in the area from which they were speaking.

The Iranian military operates separately to the IRGC - an elite force that authorities have deployed to quell previous unrest.

Both forces are commanded by Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

In a statement, the military accused Israel and "hostile terrorist groups" of seeking to "undermine the country's public security".

"The army, under the command of the supreme commander-in-chief, together with other armed forces, in addition to monitoring enemy movements in the region, will resolutely protect and safeguard national interests, the country's strategic infrastructure, and public property," it said.

The protests have ‌spread across Iran in the past two weeks, beginning in response to soaring inflation but quickly turning political, with protesters calling for clerical rulers to step down.

Authorities have accused the US and Israel of fomenting the "riots".

Iranian ‍rights groups have documented 65 deaths including 50 protesters and 15 security personnel as of January 9, with more than 2500 people arrested.

In a country with a fragmented opposition, the son of the last shah of Iran who was toppled in the 1979 Islamic revolution has emerged as a prominent voice abroad spurring on the protests.

In his latest appeal on X, US-based Reza Pahlavi said: "Our goal is no longer merely to come into the streets; the goal is to prepare to seize city centres and hold them."

He also called on "workers and employees in key sectors ​of the economy, especially transportation, and oil, and gas and energy", to begin a nationwide strike.

Trump, who bombed Iran in June and warned Tehran last week the US could come to the protesters' aid, issued another warning on Friday, saying: "You better not start shooting because ​we'll start shooting too."

"I just hope the protesters in Iran are going to be safe, because that's a very dangerous place right now."

Some protesters have shouted slogans in support of Pahlavi, although most chants call for an end to clerical rule or demand action to fix an economy hammered by years of US and other international sanctions and pummelled by the 12-day war in June, when Israel and the US launched air strikes on Iran.

On Friday, Khamenei accused protesters of acting on behalf of Trump, ​warning that Tehran would not tolerate "mercenaries for foreigners".

Iran's clerical rulers look more vulnerable than during past bouts of unrest amid a dire economic situation and after 2025's war.

Iran's clerical establishment has weathered past bouts of unrest, including student protests in 1999, over a disputed election in 2009, against economic hardships in 2019, and the 2022 ​Woman, Life, Freedom protests.

Australia, Canada and the European union issued a statement condemning the killing of protesters and commended the bravery of the Iranian people.