Iranian state television: 3,117 killed in recent protests

(Patria) - Iranian state television announced the first official death toll in recent protests, stating that 3,117 people were killed, while Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi issued a direct threat to the US.

The Martyrs Foundation statement stated that 2,427 of the total number of dead were civilians and security forces, without further explanation about the others, AP writes.

Unlike official data, the US-based Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA) states a death toll of 4,560.

Minister Araghchi, whose invitation to the World Economic Forum in Davos was withdrawn, issued threats in an op-ed for The Wall Street Journal.

Araghchi claims that the "violent phase of unrest lasted less than 72 hours," and blamed armed protesters for the violence, without mentioning videos showing security forces firing live ammunition at unarmed protesters.

"Unlike the restraint Iran showed in June 2025, our powerful armed forces have no doubt about retaliating with everything we have if we are attacked again," Araghchi wrote, referring to the 12-day war with Israel.

He emphasized that this is not a threat, but a reality he feels obliged to explicitly convey, as a diplomat and veteran, "I abhor war".

He added that "a general confrontation would certainly be fierce" and that it "would engulf the wider region and affect ordinary people around the world".

Araghchi's comments likely refer to Iran's short- and medium-range ballistic missiles, which could be aimed at US bases in the Persian Gulf.

Last week, Iran closed its airspace, and Gulf Arab countries lobbied US President Donald Trump not to launch an attack.

The minister's comments followed as the US carrier strike group USS Abraham Lincoln moved from Asia towards the Middle East.

An unnamed US Navy official confirmed that the carrier and three accompanying destroyers were heading west.

Although it was not explicitly confirmed that the group was heading to the Middle East, its location in the Indian Ocean means it is a few days away from the region.

At the same time, US military footage showed the relocation of F-15E Strike Eagles fighter jets and the HIMARS missile system to the Middle East.

The death toll in these protests exceeds all unrest in Iran in recent decades.

There are fears that the death toll could rise as information is slow to emerge from the country due to the internet shutdown in effect since January 8.

Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei stated on Saturday that "several thousand" people were killed in the protests, blaming the United States.

According to data from the Human Rights Activists News Agency, nearly 26,500 people have been arrested, raising fears of possible executions.

The killing of peaceful protesters is one of the "red lines" set by US President Trump.

At the same time, the National Army of Kurdistan, the armed wing of the Kurdistan Freedom Party (PAK), claimed that Iran carried out an attack on one of its bases near Erbil in northern Iraq.

One fighter was reportedly killed in the attack. Iran has not officially acknowledged the operation.

Kurdish dissident groups have long operated from the semi-autonomous Kurdish region of Iraq, and PAK claimed to have carried out attacks inside Iran during the suppression of protests.