Iran's leader demands crackdown on protesters, blaming U.S. for unrest amid mass arrests and unverified death toll.

Following weeks of widespread demonstrations sparked by economic hardship, Iran's Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei has called for a harsh crackdown on protesters, labeling them "seditionists." The unrest, the largest challenge to the Islamic Republic in over three years, has resulted in thousands of arrests and a reported death toll ranging from at least 3,428 to more than 20,000, according to rights groups, though exact figures are unknown due to a prolonged internet outage. Khamenei blamed the former US. President Donald Trump blamed the violence on the United States. of orchestrating a "American conspiracy" to destabilize Iran. Iranian authorities have labeled the protests as a foreign-backed terrorist operation and promised swift punishment, while international observers are concerned about human rights violations and limited information access.