President Donald Trump said on Sunday he is weighing a range of responses to escalating unrest in Iran, including possible military options, as massive protests continue to roil the country.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re looking at it very seriously. The military is looking at it, and we\u2019re looking at some very strong options. We\u2019ll make a determination,\u201d he told reporters on board Air Force One late on Sunday.<\/p>\n
He said Iran\u2019s leadership had called, seeking \u201cto negotiate\u201d after his threats of military action, and that a \u201cmeeting is being set up\u201d.<\/p>\n
But he added that \u201cwe may have to act before a meeting\u201d.<\/p>\n
The protests began on December 28 in response to soaring prices, before turning against the clerical rulers who have governed since the 1979 Islamic Revolution.<\/p>\n
Iranian authorities accuse the U.S. and Israel of fomenting trouble and called for a nationwide rally on Monday to condemn \u201cterrorist actions led by the United States and Israel\u201d in Iran, state media reported.<\/p>\n
The flow of information from Iran has been hampered by an internet blackout since last Thursday.<\/p>\n
Footage posted on social media on Saturday from Tehran showed large crowds marching along a street at night, clapping and chanting. The crowd \u201chas no end nor beginning,\u201d a man is heard saying.<\/p>\n
In footage from the northeastern city of Mashhad, smoke can be seen billowing into the night sky from fires in the street, masked protesters, and a road strewn with debris, another video posted on Saturday showed. Explosions could be heard.<\/p>\n
Reuters verified the locations.<\/p>\n
State TV showed dozens of body bags on the ground at the Tehran coroner\u2019s office, saying the dead were victims of events caused by \u201carmed terrorists\u201d, as well as footage of loved ones gathered outside the Kahrizak Forensic Medical Centre in Tehran waiting to identify bodies.<\/p>\n
Three Israeli sources, who were present for Israeli security consultations over the weekend, said Israel was on a high-alert footing for the possibility of any U.S. intervention.<\/p>\n
An Israeli military official said the protests were an internal Iranian matter, but Israel\u2019s military was monitoring developments and was ready to respond \u201cwith power if need be\u201d.<\/p>\n
Israel and Iran fought a 12-day war in June last year, which the United States briefly joined by attacking key nuclear installations. Iran retaliated by firing missiles at Israel and an American air base in Qatar.<\/p>\n
courtesy ary news<\/p>\n