Persian social media applauds Trump's public shaming of Iran's leaders

When US president Donald Trump torched Iran’s leadership in a long speech in front of Saudi Arabia’s crown prince in Riyadh on Tuesday, he likely didn’t anticipate how warmly his words would resonate with many Iranians—or perhaps he did.

Across Persian-language social media, many users were almost in awe, surprised with both the content and tone of Trump’s speech. Even journalists inside Iran couldn’t help risking reprimand by praising a US president.

“It was so intelligent of Trump to highlight issues such as the destruction of monuments and the water mafia,” renowned journalist Sadra Mohaqeq wrote on X. "And what a coincidence that he said all this on the same day he lifted US sanctions on Syria."

In his speech in Riyadh, Trump described the Islamic Republic as a “destructive” force, accusing the rulers in Tehran of “stealing their people’s wealth to fund terror and bloodshed abroad,” just as neighboring Arab leaders were building their countries.

"No one could have described the situation of a plundered country in a few sentences better than Trump," Middle Eastern Studies student Masoud Paydari posted on X.

"He uttered the harshest and most bitter words with complete politeness," a classmate commented under his post.

Trump had no good words for Iran’s supreme leader Ali Khamenei but all the world’s praise for Mohammad Bin Salman. Still, he left the door open for a “better and hopeful future” if Tehran chose to change course.

"He spoke as if he were a fellow Iranian chatting with a friend. His words were so clear. Iran’s officials should die of shame," user Maryamgh wrote on X. Many agreed, suggesting that an Iranian writer may have helped draft the US President’s speech.

Trump’s comments on Iran’s nuclear program were largely overlooked by Iranians on social media. It was his lengthy and detailed remarks about mismanagement, economic waste and cultural neglect that clearly struck a nerve.

"In a country on the southern part of the Persian Gulf, major international investors line up to offer cooperation, while another country on the northern part of the same gulf is left with no trade partners,” a user posting as Cryptosamz wrote on X, “because all its officials, from top to bottom, are thieves."

While social media users reacted with rare openness, Tehran’s major dailies remained conspicuously silent. Under apparent pressure not to credit Trump in Iran's tightly-controlled media landscape, they avoided the speech altogether.

Hardliners largely ignored it as well.

Kayhan, whose chief is appointed by Khamenei, was the only paper to address the speech directly, dismissing it as "reckless" with little elaboration. The IRGC-linked Javan stuck to its combative line. "We won’t negotiate if they insist on zero enrichment," read the headline.

State media covered Trump’s visit without pointing out its economic significance.

The wealth being amassed on the other side of the Persian Gulf was derided as mere "petrodollars," with no words of self-reflection on why they freely sell oil, reinvest profits, and fund global ventures as Iran—sitting on comparable if not superior natural resources—struggles to meet basic needs like water and electricity.