• Judiciary orders no leniency against ‘rioters’ amid unrest
• Trump vows Tehran will ‘get hit very hard’ if it kills more citizens
• 12 dead as protests expand to 45 cities; intelligence officers seize weapons cache
PARIS: Iran refused on Monday to offer “rioters” leniency while defending citizens’ right to demonstrate, a defiant stance taken after US President Donald Trump warned Tehran would “get hit very hard” if authorities killed more demonstrators amid deadly unrest.
Judiciary Chief Gholamhossein Mohseni Ejei ordered officials to take a hard line against those causing instability as protests, which erupted over economic stagnation, expanded to include political demands.
“I instruct the attorney general and prosecutors across the country to act in accordance with the law and with resolve against the rioters and those who support them… and to show no leniency or indulgence,” Mohseni Ejei said, according to the judiciary’s Mizan news agency.
He added that Iran “listens to the protesters and their criticism, and distinguishes between them and rioters”.
Demonstrations have taken place in 23 of Iran’s 31 provinces, affecting at least 45 different cities to varying degrees.
The unrest has been concentrated in the west and consists mostly of small or medium-sized gatherings, according to an AFP tally based on official statements and media reports.
At least 12 people, including members of the security forces, have been killed in localised clashes since Dec 30, officials announced.
Since the protests began on Dec 28 — sparked when shopkeepers in the capital of Tehran staged a strike over high prices — officials have struck a conciliatory tone regarding economic demands while vowing to crush destabilisation.
