According to reports, Iran’s supreme leader has for the first time publicly admitted that thousands lost their lives during recent anti-government protests, as President ramped up his rhetoric and called for new leadership in Iran.
The BBC reported that Ayatollah made these remarks during a public speech on Saturday, expressing regret over the unrest and violence and stating that some protesters died “in a barbaric, brutal way.”
The protests, which started in late December over economic concerns, later developed into demands to put an end to .
The U.S.-based Iranian Human Rights Activists News Agency estimates that over 3,000 people perished during weeks of unrest, although Iranian authorities have not released an official death toll.
The BBC stated that nationwide internet blackouts have made independent verification difficult, with connectivity plummeting to approximately 2% of normal levels, citing data from cyber monitoring organization NetBlocks.
Videos verified by BBC Persian and BBC Verify show Iranian security forces opening fire on protesters during the unrest.
On Saturday, Trump told that “it’s time to seek new leadership in Iran” after being shown a series of hostile posts on Khamenei’s X account blaming the president for the violence.
According to Politico, Trump stated, “As a country’s leader, what he is guilty of is completely ruining the country and using violence on an unprecedented scale. Leadership is about respect, not fear and death.”
Trump made personal remarks to Politico, saying, “That man is a sick individual who should govern his country properly and stop killing people.”
Trump added, “Due to poor leadership, his country is the worst place to reside globally.”
According to Politico, Trump had previously encouraged Iranians to keep protesting and “seize institutions,” stating that “help is on the way.” The president later stated he had been informed that .
When asked about the extent of , Trump told Politico, “The best decision he ever made was not executing more than 800 people two days ago.”
In a series of posts on X, Khamenei accused Trump of being responsible for the violence, stating, “We hold the US President accountable for the casualties, damages, and slander he inflicted upon the Iranian people.”
In another post, Khamenei asserted that “America’s aim is to engulf Iran.”
In recent days, Trump has stated he was considering “” including potential military engagement.
The State Department did not promptly respond to Digital’s request for comment.