Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei has described US President Donald Trump as a “criminal,” accusing Washington of causing deaths and damage to the Iranian nation and seeking to undermine the country.
In a speech broadcast on state media, Khamenei said Iran considers the US president a criminal “because of the casualties, damage and accusations he has inflicted upon the Iranian nation.” He claimed the United States aims to “swallow Iran.”
Khamenei described the recent nationwide protests as an American-backed “sedition” and said many of those involved had been arrested. He praised Iran’s security and law enforcement forces, saying they had “performed well” and detained a large number of protesters.
“We do not intend to lead the country towards war,” Khamenei said, adding, however, that Iran would not leave “domestic criminals” or “international criminals” unpunished.
Iran has been gripped by widespread protests in recent weeks, which authorities say are being instigated by foreign powers. Human rights groups and opposition activists, however, say the demonstrations are driven by domestic grievances and have accused security forces of using excessive force against protesters.
