Iran Warns US Move Against Khamenei Would Mean War
A man holds a poster of Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei during an anti-U.S. and anti-Israeli rally in support of the Iranian government, in Istanbul, Turkey, Sunday, Jan. 18, 2026. (AP Photo/Emrah Gurel)
Iran’s president warned on Sunday that any U.S. attack on the country’s top leader would be treated as an act of war. The statement appeared to respond to comments made a day earlier by President Trump, who told Politico that “it’s time to look for new leadership in Iran.”
President Masoud Pezeshkian accused the United States of fueling unrest inside Iran and said that any attempt by Washington to remove Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei would trigger “a full-scale war with the Iranian nation,” according to the Guardian. He pointed to longstanding U.S. sanctions and what he described as American hostility as key causes of Iran’s economic struggles.
Protests began in late December over rising inflation, a weakening currency, and mounting economic pressure, before expanding into broader demands for political change. Last week, President Trump encouraged Iranians to “take over your institutions” and said that “help is on its way,” as U.S. officials considered—but ultimately set aside—possible military strikes on Iran.
Separately on Sunday, a U.S.-based activist organization reported that it has verified at least 3,766 deaths connected to the protests and the government crackdown, according to the Associated Press. The Human Rights Activists News Agency said the death toll is higher than any other period of unrest in Iran in recent decades and comparable to the turmoil surrounding the 1979 revolution. Iranian authorities have not released an official figure, though Ayatollah Khamenei said Saturday that the protests resulted in “several thousand” deaths.
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