Security forces have flooded the streets of Tehran and other major Iranian cities as the regime braces for potential unrest amid rising tensions with the United States.
President Donald Trump on Saturday shared a video on social media showing heavy police deployment in the Iranian capital. The security surge follows weeks of anti-government protests that erupted in late December over economic grievances and a violent crackdown that left thousands dead. Trump also reposted a comment saying the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) is “in panic mode” and “fully sh*tting their pants.”
Eyewitnesses and local monitoring groups told Iran International that security and law enforcement personnel have surged into the northwestern cities of Ardabil and Kermanshah. The Telegram channel Bazaar Civil Protest reported that foot patrols, police vehicles and multiple organized units now occupy positions across different parts of the capital at levels not seen before. (RELATED: ‘HELP IS ON ITS WAY!’ Trump Tells Iranians Keep Protesting, Take Over)
The increased security came as two explosions rocked Iran on Saturday. The New York Post reported that a blast at an eight-story residential building in the southern port city of Bandar Abbas killed a child and injured 14 others. A second explosion in the southwestern Khuzestan province killed five people in a gas explosion at a residential complex, according to the New York Post.
Euronews identified the Bandar Abbas victim as a 4-year-old girl. The outlet also reported that Israel denied any involvement in the blasts.
Iranian officials blamed gas leaks for both explosions and denied any military operation had occurred. The IRGC denied social media reports that one of its Navy commanders had been targeted, the New York Post reported.
The explosions occurred as the IRGC prepared to conduct live-fire naval drills in the Strait of Hormuz on Sunday and Monday. The U.S. Central Command issued a warning to Tehran on Saturday, stating that any “unsafe and unprofessional behavior near U.S. forces, regional partners or commercial vessels increases risks of collision, escalation and destabilization,” Fox News reported. The USS Abraham Lincoln Carrier Strike Group has moved into position near Iran.
Three weeks after the rough government response on protests, the country has gone quiet, NBC News reported. Officers have been checking cellphones for evidence that owners participated in earlier demonstrations.
The European Union designated the IRGC as a terrorist organization in response to the crackdown, Al Jazeera reported.
