Germany voices deep concern over any rights violations in Iran

Iran’s supreme leader on Saturday urged authorities to confront and suppress ongoing demonstrations across the country.

“Protest is legitimate, but protest is different from rioting. We talk to protesters, but there is no use in talking to rioters. Rioters must be put in their place,” Iran's Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei said.

Some individuals had been incited from abroad, he said, accusing what he described as enemy-linked groups of positioning themselves behind merchants to chant slogans against the Islamic Republic.

“That some people, under various titles and names, come with the aim of destruction and creating insecurity, positioning themselves behind faithful, healthy and revolutionary merchants and exploiting their protests to cause unrest, is unacceptable.”

“We will not back down in the face of the enemy. Relying on God and with confidence in the support of the people, we will bring the enemy to its knees,” he added.

The Coordination Council of Iranian Teachers’ Trade Associations addressed Iran’s military, police and security forces in a statement, urging them not to turn against protesters.

“You come from the heart of this society. Standing against the people is standing against your own future and that of your children,” the council said. “Refrain from staining your hands with the blood of the people and be certain that history will not forget these moments.”

At least eight protesters have been killed during six days of demonstrations in Iran.

Iran's President Masoud Pezeshkian blamed nationwide protests on foreign actors, saying people were being incited from abroad to create insecurity, Iranian media reported on Saturday.

Authorities should not allow “enemies” to achieve their aims, Pezeshkian said at a meeting with the minister and senior officials at the Agriculture Ministry, adding that a task force should be formed to quickly address the problems of the merchants and bussinesses.

The treatment of families of people killed in Iran’s protests goes beyond repression, the US Department of State said in a post on its Persian-language page.

Sharing videos from funeral ceremonies, the department wrote that it was cruel not only to silence people speaking out for their rights with lethal force, but also to harass grieving families during burials. Such actions, it added, amounted to a deliberate attack on basic human dignity, warning that the world is watching.

Information received by Iran International confirms that Ahmadreza Amani, a trainee lawyer, was killed on Thursday after being shot directly by government agents during protests in the city of Azna in Lorestan.

The head of the Yazd Bar Association, Mohammad Hossein Jafari, confirmed his killing during the protests and said he had written to the head of the judiciary calling for a thorough investigation.

Human rights lawyer Sina Yousefi wrote on X that Amani was 28 and was completing the second stage of his legal traineeship. A person close to the family told Iran International that Amani’s body has not yet been handed over, adding to pressure on relatives, and said security forces have begun pressuring the family to blame protesters for his death.