President Donald Trump signaled a possible pause in US military action against Iran on Wednesday, saying he had received assurances from sources inside the country that the government had stopped killing protesters amid weeks of nationwide unrest.
Speaking to reporters in the Oval Office, Trump said he had been told by “very important sources on the other side” that Iranian authorities had halted the deadly crackdown on demonstrators. “We’ve been told that the killing in Iran is stopping — it’s stopped,” he said, adding that he would be “very upset” if the violence resumed.
Asked whether military action against Iran was now off the table, Trump declined to rule it out entirely. “We’re going to watch it and see what the process is,” he said, stressing that the administration would continue to monitor developments closely.
The remarks marked a notable shift in tone from a day earlier, when Trump publicly urged Iranians to keep protesting against the government of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and warned that Washington would “act accordingly” following reports of protesters being killed. In a social media post, Trump had written that “help is on the way,” fueling speculation that the United States was preparing for military intervention.
A White House official said Trump had recently been briefed on a range of options for potential strikes on Iran, including scenarios that would avoid civilian or economic infrastructure. Vice President JD Vance chaired a National Security Council meeting on Tuesday focused on Iran while Trump was traveling to Michigan to deliver an economic address.
US officials also confirmed that some American personnel had been redeployed from bases in Qatar and other locations in the region, citing heightened security concerns and Iranian threats against US facilities. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity because the movements were not publicly disclosed.
Those precautionary steps echoed measures taken ahead of US airstrikes on Iran in June, raising expectations that another round of strikes could be imminent. The credibility of those threats appeared to increase following the recent US operation in Venezuela that led to the capture of President Nicolas Maduro, demonstrating Washington’s willingness to act decisively abroad.
Economics defense analyst Becca Wasser said potential US actions against Iran could range from limited strikes on facilities used by internal security forces to attacks on military installations or missile production sites. More aggressive options could include targeted operations against senior military figures.
“I don’t think we have enough information to rule any of these out,” Wasser said, noting that any strikes would likely be launched from outside the Middle East, including from US forces based in Europe or from the continental United States. She added that long-range attacks from US Navy guided-missile destroyers already positioned in the region were also possible.
In an interview with Reuters published Wednesday night, Trump also cast doubt on whether Reza Pahlavi, the son of Iran’s last shah, could unite the opposition or gain acceptance inside Iran. “I don’t know whether or not his country would accept his leadership,” Trump said, though he added that a collapse of the current theocratic system was possible if protests continued.
Outside advocacy groups critical of Tehran’s response to the unrest have intensified pressure on the Trump administration to intervene. Michael Makovsky, president of the Jewish Institute for National Security of America, said the US must assist protesters to preserve its credibility. Similarly, Ahmad Sharawi of the Foundation for Defense of Democracies warned that Washington would be judged harshly if it failed to act while civilians were being killed.
Iran, meanwhile, has warned both the United States and Israel — which coordinated strikes on Iranian nuclear facilities last year — against any attempt to intervene as unrest continues across the country.
