The United States says recent protests across Iran were the result of the regime's "mismanagement" and not foreign influences, as claimed by Tehran, as the death toll continues to rise from a violent crackdown on the biggest threat to the Islamic republic in years.
In a post published on X on January 21, USAbehFarsi, the official Persian-language social media platform of the US State Department, said the protests, which began late last month, were "an inevitable uprising of the Iranian people after years of repression."
Iranian officials, including President Masud Pezeshkian, have repeatedly labeled the protesters "terrorists" and "rioters" and attribute the high number of deaths, the official statistics of which have not yet been released, to Israeli operatives.
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"The Islamic republic regime's attempt to blame foreign governments and criminalize protesters is a ridiculous attempt to rewrite reality," USAbehFarsi said.
"Denial and blaming others only serve the political propaganda of the Islamic republic regime and do not convince anyone else," it added.
The protests began on December 28 in markets in the capital, Tehran, by shopkeepers angry over dismal economic conditions, including spiraling inflation and a freefall of the currency. The unrest quickly spread across the country and turned into demonstrations against authorities for deteriorating living standards and the suppression of freedoms.
The US-based rights group HRANA says its verified death toll now stands at 4,519 while the number of deaths still under investigation stands at 9,049. At least 5,811 people have sustained serious injuries during the protests, it said, with the total number of arrests now at 26,314.
Meanwhile, a spokesperson for the Kurdistan Human Rights Network confirmed to RFE/RL's Radio Farda that the group has received reports of sexual abuse of protesters detained by the security forces.
SEE ALSO: Live Blog: Sanctions Target 'Iranian Government, Not Its People,' Says State DeptIranian authorities continue to block Internet access throughout the country and have pledged to quash any further protest activities while also reportedly using surveillance footage and social media to identify and detain protesters who participated in the unrest.
Residents of Tehran describe a city under virtual martial law, with security personnel deployed on the streets and residents largely staying indoors. Many shops and restaurants close in the evening.
They said soldiers, plainclothes agents, and members of the Basij paramilitary force were not just present in the city center but also in residential areas.
SEE ALSO: 'Bodies Behind Every Car': Witnesses Recount No-Mercy Killings In Iran's Central SuburbsSimilar security deployments have been witnessed in other parts of Iran, including Kurdish-majority areas.
Long-simmering tensions between Washington and Tehran have neared boiling point during the crisis.
US President Donald Trump initially warned that the United States was "locked and loaded" to take action if Iranian security forces killed protesters. He later threatened to take "very strong action" if Iran carried out any executions.
SEE ALSO: Alex Vatanka: Khamenei's Iran Is A 'Sinking Ship' That Must Compromise To SurviveTrump said he eventually decided on his own not to launch military strikes against Iran, crediting Tehran's alleged cancellation of hundreds of scheduled executions as the decisive factor in his decision to hold back from military action.
But US military assets still appear to be headed to the Middle East in what analysts say is a sign strikes of some type on Iran may still be on the table.
In the face of the threat of US military actions, Iranian General Abolfazl Shekarchi was quoted by state media as saying, "We will set their world on fire and leave them no safe haven in the region."
Trump met the escalation of rhetoric with a stern response, telling News Nation in an interview on January 20 that if "anything happens, they're [the US military] going to wipe them off the face of this Earth."