Iran protest death toll may exceed 1,000, US says as it applies new pressure on Tehran
- Trump slams ‘brutal’ crackdown, vowing to respond strongly to any threat from Iran to US interests
- Number of casualties difficult to verify, as authorities have severely curtailed internet access
The United States said Thursday that Iranian authorities may have killed more than 1,000 people in a crackdown on demonstrations, which Washington cast as the clerical regime’s worst-ever internal challenge.
The damning account came as the US put new pressure on Iran by not ruling out sending more forces to the region.
“It appears the regime could have murdered over 1,000 Iranian citizens since the protests began,” Brian Hook, the US point man on Iran, told reporters.
He acknowledged that information was difficult to verify in Iran, which has severely curtailed the internet, but said: “We know for certain it is many, many hundreds.”
Hook said that “many thousands” of Iranians have been wounded and that at least 7,000 protesters have been detained.