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Iran’s Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei accused some protesters of destroying public property “to please” the U.S. president, saying Donald Trump should “manage his own country” and warning he would be “overthrown” like history’s “tyrants and arrogant powers.”
"Last night in Tehran, a group of vandals destroyed public property belonging to themselves to please the President of the United States. If he can, he should manage his own country," Khamenei said in a speech marking the anniversary of the 1977 uprising against the deposed Shah regime in Qom.
Khamenei lashed out at Trump, predicting the "arrogant" U.S. president would be overthrown like the imperial dynasty that ruled Iran up to the 1979 revolution.
"That person who sits there with arrogance, judging the whole worl,d should also know that usually the tyrants and arrogant powers of the world—Pharaoh, Nimrod, Reza Khan, Mohammad Reza and the like—were overthrown exactly when they were at the peak of their pride. This one will be overthrown as well," Khamenei said.
Khamenei also accused Trump of having "blood on his hands," recalling that more than 1,000 people lost their lives in the Israeli and U.S. attacks on Iran in June 2025.
"This person said, 'I gave the order; I commanded during the war.' So, he confessed that his hands are stained with the blood of Iranians. Then he says, 'I am a supporter of Iran.' And a handful of inexperienced and thoughtless people believe it and act according to his wishes," Khamenei said.
Khamenei warned that Iran would "not tolerate agents supported by foreign powers."
"Our nation does not tolerate mercenarism (working) for foreign powers. Whoever you are, when you become a mercenary for a foreigner, when you work for a foreigner, that country considers you rejected," Khamenei said.
Khamenei insisted the Islamic Republic would not retreat in the face of the protesters, saying, "Everyone should know that the Islamic Republic came to power with the blood of hundreds of thousands of honorable people and will not back down in the face of saboteurs."
The protests in Iran began on Dec. 28, 2025, when shopkeepers at Tehran's Grand Bazaar started demonstrating over the local currency's high depreciation against foreign currencies and economic problems. The protests have since spread to many cities across the country.
While no official statement has been made regarding deaths or injuries in the protests, the U.S.-based Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA) reported that 42 people, including eight security personnel, have died in the protests so far, dozens have been injured, and 2,277 people have been detained.
The semi-official Tasnim News Agency reported on Jan. 7 that the number of police injured in the protests had risen to 568, and the number of Basij volunteer security forces had risen to 66, but did not provide information on total deaths.
U.S. President Trump had made statements threatening the Iranian government over the protests in the country.
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