Iranian officials reached out to the wider Middle East on Wednesday regarding what they described as the threat of a possible U.S. military strike, as unrest that began late December spread nationwide and sparked a bloody crackdown. The appeals came as the U.S. kept up its military presence in the region, and as Iran’s currency hit a record low amid intensifying anxiety inside Iran after an internet shutdown.
The tensions have unfolded in parallel with diplomatic signals from the region. Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates said they would not allow their airspace to be used for any attack on Iran, a stance that follows similar pledges by both countries. The U.S. has meanwhile deployed the USS Abraham Lincoln and several guided-missile destroyers into the area, positioning assets that can be used to launch attacks from the sea.
While it remained unclear what President Donald Trump would ultimately decide about the use of force, he has previously threatened to respond with military action over the killing of demonstrators and over possible mass executions. Trump also indicated Wednesday that he wants movement toward a deal his administration has been seeking with Tehran over Iran’s nuclear program.
In a post on his Truth Social platform, Trump urged Iran to “Come to the Table” and negotiate a “fair and equitable deal,” adding “NO NUCLEAR WEAPONS.” He warned that “Time is running out,” and he referenced prior June strikes on Iran in a post that tied the U.S. posture to its involvement in Israel’s fighting in the region. Iran’s United Nations mission responded quickly on X, saying Iran “stands ready for dialogue” but warning that if Iran were pushed, it “WILL DEFEND ITSELF AND RESPOND LIKE NEVER BEFORE!”
U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the increasing U.S. military presence in the Middle East was in place to defend against what he described as a possible Iranian threat to American personnel. Rubio told Congress it was “wise and prudent” to maintain a force posture in the region that could respond and, if necessary, “preemptively prevent the attack” on “thousands of American servicemen and other facilities in the region and our allies.”
Rubio also took a careful tone on the possibility of a change in Iran’s government, while describing the theocracy as “probably weaker than it has ever been.” The remarks contrasted with Trump’s ongoing threats to strike Iran if it did not yield to U.S. demands, underscoring that U.S. officials have mixed messages as they weigh military options against diplomatic engagement.
Inside Iran, Iranian state-run media has referred to protesters as “terrorists,” and the country has faced nearly three weeks of an internet blackout described as among the most comprehensive in its history. With global connectivity disrupted and authorities cutting off access and calls, activists and rights monitors have relied on limited channels—including information trickling out via Starlink satellite dishes—to keep tallying the toll.
On Wednesday, the U.S.-based Human Rights Activists News Agency said the death toll it counted reached at least 6,373 people. The group said its figures included at least 5,993 protesters, 214 government-affiliated forces, 113 children and 53 civilians who were not demonstrating, and it added that more than 42,450 people had been arrested. The Associated Press said it was unable to independently assess the death toll because authorities cut off the internet and disrupted calls into Iran.
Iran’s government has put the death toll at 3,117, saying 2,427 were civilians and security forces and describing others as “terrorists,” according to the AP account. The AP said it was not able to independently confirm activists’ numbers, but it reported that the death toll activists are alleging would exceed any other round of protests or unrest in Iran in decades.
Economic pressure has been central to the unrest, with protests that began Dec. 28 sparked by the fall of the Iranian currency, the rial, and then quickly spreading. Traders cited by the AP said the rial fell to a record low of 1.6 million to $1, and they described a longer-term drop from about 32,000 to $1 a decade ago, as the currency’s decline coincided with mounting economic woes.
The crackdown that followed has also been a source of fear about what comes next, the AP reported. Mohammad Heidari, a 59-year-old teacher in Tehran, told the AP that he felt his generation “failed to give a better lesson to younger ones,” and he said the result of decades of teaching by him and colleagues led to “death of thousands,” with “maybe more injured and prisoners.”
Diplomacy involving multiple governments also continued alongside the military signaling. Egypt’s Foreign Ministry said its top diplomat Badr Abdelatty spoke separately with Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi and U.S. Middle East envoy Steve Witkoff to “work toward achieving calm.” Turkey’s foreign minister also spoke by phone with Araghchi about reducing regional tensions, with Turkish officials expressing concern that intervention in Iran could spark instability and a refugee influx.
At the regional level, Saudi Arabia’s Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman held a call with Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, saying the kingdom would “not allow its airspace or territory to be used for any military actions against Iran or for any attacks from any party, regardless of their origin.” The AP reported that the UAE made a similar pledge, and that both countries host U.S. air assets and troops, while Iranian officials also called Qatar, which hosts a major U.S. base in the Middle East.
Araghchi told journalists outside a Cabinet meeting that applying diplomacy through military threats could not be effective or constructive, adding that negotiators would need to abandon threats, excessive demands and what he called illogical issues if they wanted talks to take shape. As the protests continued to recede from public view inside Iran after the crackdown, the AP reported that activists’ efforts to document deaths and arrests continued to inform the wider international picture of the crisis.