In Dubai, United Arab Emirates, tensions between the United States and Iran escalated on Friday as U.S. President Donald Trump and Iranian officials exchanged heated threats. This comes amid widespread economic protests in Iran, following the U.S. airstrikes on Iranian nuclear facilities in June.

President Trump took to his Truth Social platform, cautioning Iran against using violence on peaceful demonstrators, asserting that the U.S. would intervene if necessary. These protests, partly fueled by the sharp decline in Iran’s rial currency, have already resulted in at least seven fatalities.

Trump added a cryptic remark, stating, “We are locked and loaded and ready to go,” although he did not provide further details.

In response, Ali Larijani, a former speaker of Iran’s parliament and the secretary of the Supreme National Security Council, accused both the U.S. and Israel of inciting the unrest. He shared these claims on the platform X, although no evidence was provided to support these allegations, a common narrative from Iranian authorities during periods of civil unrest.

Larijani warned, “Trump should be aware that U.S. intervention in our domestic issues could lead to chaos throughout the region and potentially harm U.S. interests.” He urged American citizens to recognize Trump’s role in this “adventurism” and to be vigilant about the safety of U.S. troops.

Larijani’s remarks likely referenced America’s wide military footprint in the region. Iran in June attacked Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar after the U.S. strikes on three nuclear sites during Israel’s 12-day war on the Islamic Republic.

Ali Shamkhani, an adviser to Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei who previously was the council’s secretary for years, warned that “any interventionist hand that gets too close to the security of Iran will be cut.”

“The people of Iran properly know the experience of ‘being rescued’ by Americans: from Iraq and Afghanistan to Gaza,” he added on X.

The current protests, now in their sixth day, have become the biggest in Iran since 2022, when the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini in police custody triggered nationwide demonstrations. However, the demonstrations have yet to be countrywide and have not been as intense as those surrounding the death of Amini, who was detained over not wearing her hijab, or headscarf, to the liking of authorities.

Iran’s civilian government under reformist President Masoud Pezeshkian has been trying to signal it wants to negotiate with protesters. However, Pezeshkian has acknowledged there is not much he can do as Iran’s rial has rapidly depreciated, with $1 now costing some 1.4 million rials. That sparked the initial protests.

The protests, taking root in economic issues, have heard demonstrators chant against Iran’s theocracy as well.

Months after the war, Iran said it was no longer enriching uranium at any site in the country, trying to signal to the West that it remains open to potential negotiations over its atomic program to ease sanctions. However, those talks have yet to happen as Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu have warned Tehran against reconstituting its atomic program.