TOP STORIES
Trump Feels Obligated to Take Action on Iran as Administration Weighs Risks of Retaliation | CNN
President Donald Trump, facing a red line of his own making in Iran, increasingly believes he must take decisive action against the regime amid a violent and deadly crackdown on protesters, according to officials familiar with the matter. Top Trump administration officials met Tuesday to further refine a set of options for the president. Trump . . . was also briefed on the latest death toll figures in Iran and US expectations for how the regime’s brutal crackdown might proceed, including the prospect of executions. He was shown video from the ground in Iran as part of the briefing, a person familiar with the meeting said. In recent days, the president’s national security team has been split on whether to move forward with a kinetic strike, a source familiar with the discussions said. US officials insisted any such military move would not include boots on the ground and said the administration does not want protracted military involvement in Iran. One option before the president is a strike on facilities related to Iran’s security services, which have been responsible for the crackdown on protesters, according to people familiar with the matter.
Trump Would Want Military Action in Iran to Be Swift and Decisive, Sources Say | NBC News
President Donald Trump has told his national security team that he would want any U.S. military action in Iran to deliver a swift and decisive blow to the regime and not spark a sustained war that dragged on for weeks or months, according to a U.S. official, two people familiar with the discussions and a person close to the White House. . . . But Trump’s advisers have so far not been able to guarantee to him that the regime would quickly collapse after an American military strike . . . and there is concern that the U.S. may not have all the assets in the region it would need to guard against what administration officials expect would be an aggressive Iranian response. Those dynamics could lead Trump to approve a more limited U.S. military offensive in Iran, at least initially, while reserving options to escalate—if he decides to take any military action at all, said the U.S. official and one of the people familiar with the discussions.
Inside Iran, Protesters Urge Trump to Act: ‘If Nothing Happens, It’s a Catastrophe’ | Time
Despite an almost total communications blackout, a small number of Iranians have managed to send messages out of the country. They describe mounting civilian deaths and streets awash with blood—and say many protesters are pinning their hopes on President Donald Trump following through on his threats against Iran’s rulers. “That’s the only thing they’re thinking about,” said a resident of Tehran’s Marzdaran neighborhood. Another resident, from the capital’s affluent Niavaran district, said protesters see outside intervention as their only remaining option. “People know they won’t be able to beat them without help,” they said. . . . “Literally 9 or 10 people called, and said, ‘Good news—Trump said help is on the way,” said a man who had traveled out of Iran on Wednesday. “Everyone is waiting for an attack, an attack that will weaken the suppression system,” he said. “If that happens the whole country will go back on the streets.”
UANI IN THE NEWS
How Trump Can Squeeze the Iranian Regime | UANI Policy Director Jason M. Brodsky in the Spectator
[The] Trump administration and its allies should focus on supporting the Iranian people. The first step should be to freeze diplomacy with the Iranian regime. . . . Second, western capitals should begin compiling a package of sanctions against those complicit in human rights abuses. . . . Third, the US government should pursue federal criminal indictments against Iran’s supreme leader and his henchmen for terrorism, corruption and human rights abuses. . . . Fourth, the US and its allies should deploy offensive cyber capabilities, covert action and missile strikes against the regime. This should be aimed at preventing Iran from throttling the internet and damaging its surveillance and suppressive apparatus. . . . Striking Iran militarily over its human rights abuses would be unprecedented for an American president. But President Trump has already broken taboos and shattered the faulty assumptions that have paralyzed US-Iran policy for decades.
Iran Won't Repeat 1979 | UANI Senior Advisor Saeid Golkar in Persuasion
Iran is living through one of the most dangerous moments in its post-revolutionary history. Nationwide protests have become sustained rather than episodic. As a new wave of unrest spread across the country, violence intensified. These events have revived a familiar question: Is Iran heading toward another 1979? The temptation to rely on this analogy is understandable. Images of mass mobilization and rapidly recurring protests evoke memories of the final months of the Shah’s rule. Yet the comparison is ultimately misleading.
UANI Director of IRGC Research Kasra Aarabi Discusses Iran | The Brink
Drawing on documents obtained from inside IRGC headquarters and direct contact with protest leaders, Kasra Aarabi explains how the regime’s vast infrastructure of repression operates at every level of Iranian society. We discuss the use of military-grade weapons against unarmed civilians, the scale of arrests and executions, and why the death toll is likely far higher than officially reported. The conversation explores how Iran’s violence is no longer contained within its borders.
UANI Director or IRGC Research Kasra Aarabi Discusses the Iranian Protests | Deadline: White House
Kasra Aarabi, an expert on Iran’s current regime, joins Nicolle to cover the widespread, mass protests happening all over Iran.
Iran Protests: How Musk’s Starlink is Helping Pierce Internet Blackout | Bloomberg
Most Iranians will still struggle to access Starlink unless huge numbers of the receivers can be spirited into the country. “That of course has its risks. And I think that it can’t happen necessarily overnight,” said Jason Brodsky, policy director of US-based advocacy group United Against Nuclear Iran. Cyberwarfare could also be used to counter Iran’s internet blackout. “One of the options that the president is likely weighing is to use offensive cyber operations to jam the ability of the Iranian regime to turn off the internet and also any kind of interference that they’re trying to mount with respect to Starlink in the country,” said Brodsky. This could involve sending planes over Iran that emit stronger signals than the Iranian jamming equipment, making it ineffective — essentially jamming the jammers.
Israel Waits on US to Settle ‘Unfinished Business’ with Iran | Financial Times
“It’s a historic opportunity to make a change—and a dramatic change—across the Middle East and the world,” said [UANI Senior Advisor] Zohar Palti, a former head of both policy at Israel’s defence ministry and of intelligence at the Mossad spy agency.
Iran’s Regime Has Already Lost Its Most Potent Weapon | UANI Senior Advisor Michael Singh for MS NOW
For all the military weapons remaining in the Iranian regime’s arsenal, it has finally been deprived of the one that authoritarians rely upon most: fear. . . . As the Trump administration deliberates over how to respond to events in Iran, most vital is not to rescue the Iranian regime from its dilemma. Both President Trump and Vice President JD Vance have suggested that they are entertaining a regime offer of negotiations with Washington. But now is not the time for a new nuclear deal or other engagement that would alleviate pressure. Rather than allowing the regime to escape the existential question it faces—change or collapse—Washington should apply additional pressure on Iran’s rulers and offer support to its people.
MILITARY/INTELLIGENCE MATTERS & PROXY WARS
US and UK Pulling Some Personnel from Qatar Military Base | BBC News
The US and UK are reducing the number of personnel at the Al-Udeid air base in Qatar, as US President Donald Trump considers whether to take action against Iran over its crackdown on anti-government protests. Officials have told CBS, the BBC’s US partner, that the partial American withdrawal was a “precautionary measure.” The BBC understands some UK military personnel are also being removed.
Trump Informed Iran He Does Not Intend to Attack, Asked Tehran to Exercise Restraint: Envoy | Dawn
Iran’s envoy to Pakistan, Reza Amiri Moghadam, revealed on Thursday that US President Donald Trump informed Tehran that he will not attack the country and asked that Iran also exercise restraint.
Iran Closes Airspace for Hours as Trump Claims Executions Halted | Euronews
Iran restricted its airspace to commercial planes for more than four hours early Thursday, providing no explanation as tensions with the United States remained high over Tehran's suppression of demonstrations.
With Tensions High, Israel and Iran Secretly Reassured Each Other via Russia | Washington Post
Days before protests erupted in Iran in late December, Israeli officials notified the Iranian leadership via Russia that they would not launch strikes against Iran if Israel were not attacked first. Iran responded through the Russian channel that it would also refrain from a preemptive attack, diplomats and regional officials with knowledge of the exchange said.
Iran Warns of Retaliation if Trump Strikes, US Withdraws Some Personnel from Bases | Reuters
“All the signals are that a U.S. attack is imminent, but that is also how this administration behaves to keep everyone on their toes. Unpredictability is part of the strategy,” a Western military official told Reuters . . . [A] senior Iranian official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said Tehran had asked U.S. allies in the region to prevent Washington from attacking Iran.
“Tehran has told regional countries, from Saudi Arabia and UAE to Turkey, that U.S. bases in those countries will be attacked” if the U.S. targets Iran, the official said.
The Weapons the US Could Employ in Any New Strike on Iran | CNN
The Trump administration touted last year’s bombing of Iranian nuclear sites as one of its great military successes. US Air Force B-2 bombers dropped 14 of the world’s biggest bombs, hitting two Iranian nuclear installations without any US casualties or loss of aircraft, including the dozens of fighter jets, tankers and support aircraft that helped execute the mission. Now President Donald Trump is threatening to attack Iran again, this time in solidarity with the hundreds of thousands of ordinary Iranians who have taken to the streets to oppose the hardline regime in Tehran. But any new US attack on the Islamic Republic is unlikely to mirror the one-time strikes that hit three nuclear targets last summer, analysts say.
PROTESTS AND HUMAN RIGHTS
Iran’s Heavy Crackdown Quells Protests | Wall Street Journal
A fierce crackdown by Iranian security forces that has killed thousands of people protesting against the country’s autocratic leaders has forced demonstrators off the streets in some cities, with residents reporting an eerie quiet after days of escalating violence. . . . The quiet is likely temporary, analysts said, since the underlying anger against the state remains high and the government has few ways to resolve the economic problems at the root of widespread discontent.
‘Shoot to Kill’: Accounts of Brutal Crackdown Emerge from Iran | New York Times
Eyewitnesses say government forces have begun opening fire, apparently with automatic weapons and at times seemingly indiscriminately, on unarmed protesters. Hospital workers say protesters had been coming in with pellet injuries but now arrive with gunshot wounds and skull fractures. One doctor called it a “mass-casualty situation.” Despite the communications blockade, a recurring image has made its way out of Iran: rows and rows of body bags.
Amid Iran’s Blackout, Videos Show Lethal Violence Across the Country | Washington Post
Security forces fired directly into crowds of protesters in at least six different cities across Iran, illustrating how widely violence has spread, according to a Washington Post review of videos that have surfaced online recently. In one video, sustained gunfire rings out for about 20 seconds from a roof over a darkened street in Tehran toward protesters as they run away. When it breaks, protesters scream, “Death to Khamenei! Don’t be afraid!” referring to Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. The voices fade and the gunfire resumes. Other videos, which surfaced since the government-imposed blackout began on Thursday, reveal the scale of the casualties. In one, at least a hundred bodies cloaked in bags await identification at a morgue in Tehran.
Erfan Soltani, 26, was arrested last Thursday in the city of Fardis, just west of Tehran. Days later, authorities informed his family his execution had been scheduled for Wednesday without giving any additional details, according to Norway-based Kurdish human rights group Hengaw. . . . Soltani is a resident of Fardis, Karaj, where he owns a clothes shop. He was arrested “at his private residence,” Hengaw said in a statement. Iranian authorities have reportedly failed to give Soltani's family any more information about his case, citing only that he had been arrested in connection with a protest. . . . “Erfan is the first protester to be sentenced to death, but he won't be the last,” the US State Department said on its Farsi-language X account.
Iran Says Protester Was Not Sentenced to Death After International Outcry | New York Times
Iran’s judiciary said on Thursday that it had not issued a death sentence for Erfan Soltani, a protester whose execution had been widely reported as imminent and drawn intense international attention. . . . “This is good news,” Mr. Trump said on Thursday on social media, citing an unspecified Fox News report that said an unnamed Iranian protester and others would not be sentenced to death. “Hopefully, it will continue!” he said. . . . The Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting, or IRIB, said on social media that the judiciary had said that Mr. Soltani faced “charges of assembly and collusion against national security and propaganda against the system.” It added that the death penalty does not exist in Iranian law for those offenses.
“We’ve been told that the killing in Iran is stopping—it’s stopped—it’s stopping,” [President Donald] Trump said . . . “And there’s no plan for executions, or an execution, or executions—so I’ve been told that on good authority.” . . . On Wednesday, Iranian officials signaled that suspects detained in nationwide protests would face fast trials and executions while the Islamic Republic promised a “decisive response” if the U.S. or Israel intervene in the domestic unrest.
Iran’s Internet Kill Switch Project in Final Stages—Sources | Iran International
Iranian authorities are moving quickly to launch a new project designed to make it possible to cut the country off from the global internet completely and for extended periods, according to information obtained by Iran International. The project aims to build a national network on a Huawei-based platform, doing work similar to services provided by Iranian cloud firm ArvanCloud (Abr Arvan) but on a far larger scale, the information said. . . . According to the information, the project is in its final stages and is being brought online under ArvanCloud’s management, through a company called Ayandeh Afzay-e Karaneh. The project is linked to individuals and companies under US sanctions, including Fanap and its CEO Shahab Javanmardi—sanctioned by the US Treasury in August over alleged ties to Iran’s intelligence ministry and the Revolutionary Guards.
As the Islamic Republic unleashes its brutal crackdown, Iranians like Sarah are desperate for a clear sign Mr Trump will step in to assist. “They were expecting some movement from countries abroad—especially the president [Trump],” she said. “Unfortunately, they didn’t see any moment [of action] yet. Everybody is sitting and waiting and thinking maybe today or tonight there will be some news. Will the president fulfil his promise or not? Everyone is waiting for some action to happen so they can once again draw energy [to take to the streets].” Sarah said if there “was not help from outside” and if “the president doesn't keep his word", she did not believe "people will have the motivation to continue [protesting].”
Iran’s Regime Focuses on Post-Protest Vengeance and Insists Unrest Is Over | CBS News
The Iranian regime has gone on the offensive, threatening anyone who supported the recent protests in any way . . . The post-protest reprisals are meant to frighten people into silence. They include going after businesses, money and financial assets connected to anyone seen as having backed the anti-regime demonstrations.
‘De Facto Curfew’: Residents Describe Tightened Security in Iran | Iran International
Iranian authorities have significantly expanded the presence of security forces across multiple cities, tightening control to prevent further protests in what some residents inside Iran described as a ‘de facto curfew.’ Multiple sources told Iran International that patrols and checkpoints were ubiquitous, with increased police and military deployments across urban centers, particularly in major cities.
Iran Minister Says ‘There Is No Plan for Hanging’ When Asked About Protests | Reuters
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi said on Wednesday “there is no plan” by Iran to hang people, when asked about the anti-government protests in the Middle Eastern nation. “There is no plan for hanging at all,” the foreign minister told Fox News . . . “Hanging is out of the question,” he said.
Iran’s Footballers Face Battle to Be Heard as Regime Brutally Clamps Down on Protests | Guardian
Mehdi Taremi did what he does best. On Saturday, the Iranian striker turned inside the area and scored for Olympiakos, a well-taken eighth goal of the season for the 33-year-old that clinched a 2-0 win at Atromitos and a place at the top of the Greek Super League. Usually, millions of people in Iran follow every step of Taremi’s European career . . . but not this time. The ruling regime in Tehran has cut the internet and all communications, which meant that residents of the football-loving nation also missed the non-celebration that followed. “It actually has to do with the conditions in my country,” Taremi said. “There are problems between the people and the government. The people are always with us, and that’s why we are with them. I couldn’t celebrate in solidarity with the Iranian people. I know that Olympiakos fans would like me to be happy, but I don’t celebrate the goals, in solidarity with what the Iranian people are going through.”
IRGC Media Targets Football Players over Protest Support | IranWire
Fars News Agency, a media outlet linked to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) has issued open threats against Voria Ghafouri, former captain and current coach of Esteghlal, Ali Habibi-Nejad, a member of Iran’s national boxing team, and the management of Bargh Shiraz Football Club. Earlier, Voria Ghafouri said his cafés in Tehran would remain closed on Thursday and Friday, January 8 and 9, 2026, in support of nationwide strikes. Around the same time, Ali Habibi-Nejad used his official Instagram account to urge people across Iran to join “walking” gatherings in cities and streets on those days. Bargh Shiraz Football Club also expressed support, saying it would suspend activity on its official Instagram page “for now.” In a report titled “Calling for Chaos from the Football Field,” Fars News Agency wrote: “These unrests will soon come to an end, but the real test for officials of the football federation, boxing federation, and Esteghlal Football Club will begin afterward - when they must show that calls for chaos will receive a firm response.”
SANCTIONS, SHIPPING, BUSINESS RISKS, & OTHER ECONOMIC NEWS
Iran’s Revolutionary Guard Used Crypto to Evade Sanctions, Report Finds | Washington Post
Iranian security forces have used two cryptocurrency exchanges registered in Britain to move about $1 billion since 2023, evading international economic sanctions, according to a new analysis from a company specializing in crypto investigations. The two exchanges identified by TRM Labs gave Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) a way to move large sums of money across borders, with the group using a mechanism disguised as a mundane piece of the crypto sector’s financial infrastructure. In doing so, the Revolutionary Guard demonstrated a new level of sophistication in using cryptocurrency, TRM Labs said.
Dozens of Ships Anchor Outside Iran’s Ports as US Tensions Rise | Reuters
Dozens of commercial ships have dropped anchor at a distance outside Iran’s port limits in recent days, according to data and shipping sources, as tensions with the United States grow. Such movements were precautionary given the tensions amid ongoing protests in Iran, the shipping sources said. Port limits are significant because they run a higher risk of collateral damage in the event of air strikes on nearby infrastructure.
The Obscure Bank Collapse That Sent Iran into a Tailspin | Wall Street Journal
The biggest harbinger that things were about to fall apart in Iran didn’t come from the thwarted anger of the country’s opposition or the frustrated hopes of young people hungry for more personal freedom. It came from the collapse of a bank. Late last year, Ayandeh Bank, run by regime cronies and saddled with nearly $5 billion in losses on a pile of bad loans, went bust. The government folded the carcass into a state bank and printed a massive amount of money to try to paper over all the red ink. That buried the problem but didn’t solve it. Instead, the failure became both a symbol and an accelerant of an economic unraveling that ultimately triggered the protests that now pose the most significant threat to the regime since the founding of the Islamic Republic half a century ago. The bank’s collapse made clear that the Iranian financial system, under strain from years of sanctions, bad lending and reliance on inflationary printed money, had become increasingly insolvent and illiquid. Five other banks are thought to be similarly weak.
HOSTAGES
Former Hostage Says Cutting Diplomatic Ties with Iran Will Pressure Regime | Euronews
Systematic and widespread attacks against unarmed civilians during protests in Iran have been insufficiently addressed by the European Union and its member states, according to former Iran hostage and humanitarian worker Olivier Vandecasteele, who urged the bloc to severe diplomatic ties with the Islamic Republic. He said the sanctions and political isolation imposed on Tehran by Western powers have been insufficient and that Europe has collectively failed to stop Iran's crimes. . . . “I would encourage not just more sanctions, but also clearly the listing of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) as a terrorist organisation, which has been asked and voted in the European Parliament several times, but has never been acted upon,” he suggested.
IRANIAN INTERNAL DEVELOPMENTS
Tehran Leaders Wiring Huge Sums of Money Out of Iran, US Treasury Says | Iran International
“As Treasury who carries out the sanctions we can see is we are now seeing the rats fleeing the ship because we can see millions, tens of millions of dollars being wired out of the country, snuck out of the country by the Iranian leadership,” [Treasury Secretary Scott] Bessent said in an interview with Newsmax. “So they are abandoning ship, and we are seeing it come into banks and financial institutions all over the world,” the Treasury Secretary added. . . . “What we do at Treasury is we follow the money, whether it is through the banking system or through digital assets. We are going to trace these assets and they will not be able to keep them.” Separately, Israel’s Channel 14 reported on Wednesday that Iran's leaders have transferred $1.5 billion [in cryptocurrency] to escrow accounts in Dubai over the past two days. . . . The report alleged that the Supreme Leader’s son and one of his potential successors Mojtaba Khamenei is one of the people involved in these transfers.
RUSSIA & IRAN
Russia Unlikely to Risk ‘Reputation Failure’ by Intervening in Iran Unrest | Al Jazeera
The Kremlin is confident that mass protests in Iran have peaked, and Tehran’s leadership has managed to squash domestic resistance to its rule, according to one of Russia’s pre-eminent experts on Iran. Russia’s embassy in Tehran apparently informed Moscow that the protests have died down and that the Kremlin “can breathe a sigh of relief,” Nikita Smagin told Al Jazeera.
EUROPE & IRAN
France Explores Sending Eutelsat Terminals to Iran amid Internet Blackout | Reuters
France is looking into sending Eutelsat satellite terminals to Iran to help citizens after Iranian authorities imposed a blackout of internet services in a bid to quell the country’s most violent domestic unrest in decades.
Pressure Mounts on EU to List Iran’s Revolutionary Guards as Terror Organisation | Euronews
Iran’s violent crackdown on protesters has reignited a long-running debate within the European Union over designating the Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC)— widely seen as a key force behind the repression—as a terrorist organisation. . . . According to diplomats in Brussels, countries like Germany and the Baltic states are among the countries pushing to revive discussions on the issue after the extreme violence exerted on protesters following two weeks of demonstrations. . . . Italy, France and Spain are yet to make a decision, according to diplomats briefed on the matter.
UK Ambassador and All Embassy Staff Evacuated from Iran | Politico
Britain has evacuated its ambassador and all embassy staff from Iran, a U.K. official said Wednesday, as U.S. President Donald Trump weighs launching strikes against the Islamist regime.
Iran Summoned EU Diplomats in Tehran for a Lesson—but Got an Earful Instead | Politico
European diplomats were summoned to a closed-door meeting in Tehran with Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi at which they “forcefully” objected to Iran’s crackdown on anti-regime protests, according to European officials. . . . The meeting started with Araghchi presenting the Islamic regime’s version of the uprising, describing protesters as rabble-rousers and anti-regime forces supported from abroad, the diplomat said. . . . However, the European and British envoys used their speaking time to push back strongly against the minister’s account, voicing outrage over what Britain’s Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper called the “brutal repression” of protests.
Italy Urges Its Citizens to Leave Iran Because of Security Concerns | Reuters
Italy has strongly renewed an appeal to its citizens to leave Iran because of the security situation in the country, the foreign ministry said in a statement on Wednesday. There are around 600 Italians in Iran, most of them in the Tehran area, it added.
Poland Urges Citizens in Iran to Leave ‘Immediately’ over ‘Unstable Internal Situation’ | TVP World
Poland’s foreign ministry has appealed to Poles currently in Iran to leave “immediately” amid a wave of protests and a crackdown that has reportedly left thousands dead.
TURKEY & IRAN
Iranians Arrive in Turkey Through Border Gate as Crackdown Persists | Reuters
Dozens of Iranians crossed the border into Turkey on Wednesday, as authorities in Iran crack down on one of the biggest ever waves of protest against the Islamic Republic’s clerical rule. . . . Iranian families and individuals arrived in Turkey’s eastern province of Van through the Kapikoy border gate, pulling luggage and other belongings with them as they made their way through the border gate and got on vehicles heading for nearby towns. Those asked to speak to media declined to do so, expressing fear of repercussions in Iran when they return. Two diplomats have told Reuters there has been an increase in the numbers of people crossing from Iran to Turkey after several countries advised their citizens to leave.
GULF STATES & IRAN
Trump’s Gulf Allies Do Not Want Him to Bomb Iran | New York Times
President Trump’s powerful Gulf Arab allies fear the repercussions of a potential American strike on Iran, and some of them are publicly and privately lobbying his administration to choose diplomacy instead.
MISCELLANEOUS
UN Security Council to Meet on Iran This Afternoon | Agence France-Presse
The UN Security Council is slated to meet this afternoon for “a briefing on the situation in Iran” . . . The scheduling note says the briefing was requested by the United States.