Yesterday, "The Washington Post" reported that protests across Iran, triggered by the sharp depreciation of currency and soaring prices, have escalated and continued for a week, resulting in multiple deaths. On Friday morning, Trump posted on Truth Social: "If Iran shoots and kills peaceful protesters as they usually do, the United States will come to their rescue." He also said: "We are locked and loaded and ready to act." This is Trump's latest threat against Iran. Previously, he had stated that he supports more strikes against Iran if they rebuild nuclear facilities.
It remains unclear what exactly Trump meant by "locked and loaded." Although the US military has redeployed a significant portion of its combat forces toward Venezuela in recent months, thousands of US troops remain stationed in the Middle East, with US fighter jets deployed in several Middle Eastern countries. A Pentagon spokesperson stated that the Department of Defense is "always ready to carry out" the President's orders. However, an anonymous informed official said that there were no immediate changes in the US military posture in the Middle East after Trump made these remarks. Previous US presidents have sometimes hesitated to intervene in overseas protests, fearing being drawn into them and unsure how to handle another country's domestic politics.
Several hours after Trump issued these threats, Iran's permanent representative to the United Nations, Amir Saeed Iravani, wrote to the UN Secretary-General and the President of the UN Security Council, urging them to "unequivocally and firmly condemn" Trump's "reckless and provocative" statements against Iran, stating that Trump's threats against Iran "seriously violate" the UN Charter and international law. In the letter, Iravani also stated that the Iranian government "reiterates its inherent right to defend national sovereignty" and will "exercise its rights in a decisive and appropriate manner," adding that "the United States will bear full responsibility for any escalation of tensions resulting from these illegal threats and their subsequent consequences."
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Original: toutiao.com/article/1853271319309321/
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