ON THE CUSP OF WAR: Statement by Seyed Abbas Araghchi, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Islamic Republic of Iran

 

As black-clad groups of masked terrorists used rifles and handguns to infiltrate protests and mow down innocent demonstrators on our streets, reports emerged in various media claiming that big cities in Iran had “fallen.” Other reports alleged the continuation of widespread armed violence. In reality, the violent phase of the unrest lasted less than 72 hours. I acknowledged in an interview with Fox News that the death toll is in the hundreds, with a final tally to be released when the Health Ministry and hospitals are able to provide figures with accuracy.

 

 

From Dec. 28 to the evening of Jan. 8, Iran witnessed various scenes familiar in many other democracies: largely peaceful protests against economic reforms and the state of the economy, especially inflation, negotiations with trade groups, and limited, nonlethal clashes. Iranian police are trained and equipped primarily to manage unrest without firearms, and almost all officers on the ground were unarmed. But only hours after Mr. Trump’s announcement that he was considering intervention in the case of mass violence, our security forces were caught off guard by coordinated, large-scale armed attacks.

 

Gunfire targeted police and civilians alike. Officers were shot, burned and even beheaded. Public buses, hospitals, ambulances, fire stations, health infrastructure, chain stores and even mosques were deliberately destroyed to maximize casualties and impede emergency response. The majority of those killed were police officers and ordinary civilians. To put the shocking scale of violence in perspective, it was the equivalent of 600 law-enforcement personnel in the U.S. being killed in 72 hours. No government would sit idly by as its citizens were subjected to such unfathomable horrors.

 

Contrary to the lies being peddled abroad, all unarmed victims have been officially recognized as martyrs. This means that every affected family will receive full support, including the same compensation and benefits as fallen police officers.

 

The violence on our streets has subsided and normal life has returned nationwide. Thanks to the intervention of our brave security personnel and the vigilance and cooperation of the public, terrorist cells have been hunted down and eliminated.

 

 

 

With Iran, Mr. Trump tried diplomacy first. On at least three occasions, we were very close to a middle-way solution during negotiations in Oman last May. Ultimately, it didn’t pan out. Why? Because of Israel’s proxies in the White House, who couldn’t possibly care less about American interests. We also missed an excellent opportunity to resume diplomacy in New York last September, simply because of miscalculation on the U.S. side in urging the Europeans to invoke the so-called snapback provision of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action, reimposing United Nations sanctions against Iran.

 

Iran will always choose peace over war. We have always been ready for real and serious negotiations to achieve a fair and balanced deal, and we have proved it time and again in recent years. Mindful of what we experienced in June and September 2025, we are unconvinced that the U.S. shares that mindset.

 

Iran’s message to President Trump is clear: The U.S. has tried every conceivable hostile act against Iran, from sanctions and cyber assaults to outright military attack—and, most recently, it clearly fanned a major terrorist operation—all of which failed. It is time to think differently. Try respect, which will allow us to advance farther than one may believe.

 

 

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Statement of the Iran National Security Council on the Terrorist attacks of January 2026

Source: Telegram, January 21, 2026

In the name of God, the Most Gracious, the Most Merciful

To the honorable and brave nation of Islamic Iran, it is hereby informed that the collection of intelligence monitoring and security measures over the past days has led your servants in the security, law enforcement, and judicial bodies of the country to conclude that after the occurrence of the 12-day imposed war by the United States and the Zionist regime and the powerful resistance of Islamic Iran against this aggression, the enemy realized that merely using military tools cannot subdue the Iranian nation. The unparalleled social solidarity and unity of the nation was one of the main pillars of Iran’s victory in the 12-day imposed war and the main reliance of the Iranian armed forces to respond to the aggressor.

Therefore, the United States and the Zionist regime changed their tactics and targeted the social cohesion of the Iranian nation, hoping to create conditions to break the national will of Iranians.

After peaceful protests by merchants and guilds in some cities, the honorable President directly listened to their representatives in several sessions and, while advising the police to accompany and be patient with peaceful gatherings, issued necessary orders to address the concerns of economic activists.

However, organized riot cells did not want the gatherings to follow a peaceful path and, by turning protests violent in various cities caused damage to the people and the country.

Following this phase, with the aim of taking control out of the situation and destabilizing cities through the use of maximum violence and targeted, organized armed attacks on places and gatherings intending to cause casualties and destroy public and private property, multiple terrorist acts occurred in various parts of the country. During these actions, terrorists, in addition to damaging markets, shops, banks, mosques, and Hosseiniyehs, emergency vehicles, public transportation, schools, medical centers, gas stations, and other public and private properties, committed ISIS-like atrocities such as burning people alive, beheadings, stabbing, alongside widespread use of firearms, resulting in the martyrdom of 2,427 innocent people and guardians of order and security, out of a total of 3,117 casualties in these incidents.

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Based on documents available to the National Security Council, in these two days, a fully heinous crime supported by the enemies of Islamic Iran against the Iranian nation was recorded.

By the grace of God and with the wise and prudent leadership of the Supreme Leader (may his shadow be extended), through the dedication and intelligent actions and sacrifices of security and law enforcement forces, and also thanks to the heroic presence of the Iranian nation, the criminal enemy failed to achieve its evil goal of spreading chaos and insecurity in the country. And with God’s help and the support of all insightful and mature compatriots, once again national cohesion and unity imposed another defeat on the enemies of Iran.