Iran's president accuses the US and Israel of “bringing terrorists into the country”. Pezeshkian, appeal to Iranians, after days of protests against the regime

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said on Sunday that protesters should not be allowed to disrupt society, in his first statements after three nights of intense demonstrations against the country's authorities, reports AFP.

Protests in Iran began on December 28 over economic issues, but continued every day and have since turned into more general demonstrations against the theocratic regime in Tehran.

In an interview on state television on Sunday, Pezeshkian said “it is the people's right to protest,” but echoed the authorities' position and distinguished between protests related to the country's poor economy and “those who are rioting,” who he claims are supported by the US and Israel.

“The people should not allow rioters to disrupt society. The people should believe that we want to establish justice,” Iran's president told the IRB.

Pezeshkian called on Iranians to “unite and not let these people riot” in the streets.

“If people have a concern, we will listen to them, it is our duty to listen to them and solve their problems. However, our biggest duty is not to allow protesters to come and disrupt society,” he said.

Iran's president, accusations against the United States and Israel

Masoud Pezeshkian accused the United States and Israel of “trying to escalate” grievances over “the economic talks and the solutions we are working on.”

“They took some people here, domestically and abroad, and trained them. They brought terrorists from abroad into the country,” Iran's president added, calling the protesters who torched a mosque “inhumans”.

The New York Times wrote that US President Donald Trump has been informed in recent days about possible options for a military strike against Iran. Sources familiar with the matter told Reuters that Israel is on high alert in case of possible US intervention to support the protest movement in Iran.

Iran warned President Donald Trump on Sunday that any US attack would lead to Tehran retaliating against Israel and regional US military bases, which it considers “legitimate targets”.