United States President Donald Trump has said that Washington may be forced to take action against Iran amid ongoing nationwide protests, even as he revealed that Tehran has reached out to Washington seeking negotiations.
Speaking to reporters onboard Air Force One, Trump said Iranian leaders had contacted Washington to discuss diplomatic engagement.
When asked whether Iran wanted to engage in diplomatic talks with him, Trump responded affirmatively.
"They do. They called. Iran called to negotiate yesterday. The leaders of Iran called. They want to negotiate. I think they're tired of being beat up by the United States. Iran wants to negotiate," Trump said.
The US President further added that a meeting was in the process of being arranged but cautioned that developments on the ground inside Iran could force Washington's hand before talks take place.
"We may meet with them. I mean, it's a meeting being set up, but we may have to act because of what's happening before the meeting. But a meeting is being set up." Trump said.
When asked whether Iran had crossed the red line he had drawn over the treatment of protesters, Trump said, "They're starting to, it looks like."
The US President, referring to the ongoing protests in the Islamic Republic, added that those in power were ruling through violence.
He emphasised that the situation was being closely monitored at the highest levels of the US government.
"There seem to be some people killed that aren't supposed to be killed. These are violent - if you call them leaders, I don't know if they're leaders or if they just rule through violence - but we're looking at it very seriously. The military's looking at it. We're looking at some very strong options; we'll make a determination," Trump stated.
The US President did not elaborate on the specific actions Washington might take, but according to a New York Times report, Trump was briefed on a range of military options targeting Iran.
A reporter then questioned the President on Iran claiming that they would consider military and commercial bases as legitimate targets if the US struck at them
In reply Trump said, "If they do that, we'll consider things that they wouldn't believe. We will hit them at levels that they've never been hit before."
The reporter followed up asking, "Do you think Iran would take this threat seriously?"
Trump replied saying, "Wouldn't you say that they probably do at this point, after going through it for years with me?... Soleimani, al-Baghdadi, the Iran nuclear threat wiped out... What a stupid question."
With the internet services having been shut down in the Islamic Republic of Iran for the past two days, and when Trump was asked if his administration is considering the possibility of enabling internet access in Iran, including through Elon Musk's Starlink service, he said that the discussions were underway; however, no final decision had been made.
"We are going to be talking about that. We may get the internet going. We may speak to Elon Musk; I am going to call him," the US President said.
Meanwhile, US Senator Lindsey Graham, during a fundraising event hosted by the Tzedek Association, indicated that US military action against Iran could be imminent.
Addressing the gathering, Graham said that developments related to Iran could unfold at any moment.
"I don't know what, but this might be the night. It's just a matter of time now. This tyrannical regime needs to end. We need to end this for the good people of Iran and for ourselves and the people of Israel. We need to take this guy down. He needs to leave, standing up or lying down. I don't care. He needs to go," Graham said.
These remarks come amid the Islamic Republic witnessing severe unrest and protests across several provinces in the country for the last 15 days against soaring inflation and economic hardship.
The protests have soon escalated into tense nationwide unrest, marked by violent clashes between protesters and security forces.
As per the press wing of the Human Rights Activists in Iran (HRA), during the anti-government demonstrations, at least 544 people were reportedly killed, while dozens of other cases are still being investigated.
Additionally, more than 10,681 individuals have been taken into custody and transferred to prisons, with demonstrations reported at 585 locations nationwide, covering 186 cities across all 31 provinces, according to HRA.
The protests began on December 28 as demonstrations have spread across multiple cities, with authorities responding through arrests, crackdowns, and the use of force.
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