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From the Liveblog of
Wednesday, January 7, 2026
From the Liveblog of
Wednesday, January 7, 2026
Iran president urges security forces not to target peaceful protesters
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Iran's President Masoud Pezeshkian takes questions from the media at a press briefing in New York, September 26, 2025. (Angelina Katsanis/AP)
Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian orders security forces not to crack down on economic protests, drawing a distinction between peaceful demonstrators and armed “rioters.”
In a video released by the news agency Mehr after a cabinet meeting, Vice President Mohammad Jafar Ghaempanah says Pezeshkian has “ordered that no security measures be taken against the demonstrators.”
“Those who carry firearms, knives and machetes and who attack police stations and military sites are rioters, and we must distinguish protesters from rioters,” Ghaempanah adds.
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