Iran’s most powerful military force has warned that it is prepared to respond immediately to any hostile action, as US President Donald Trump said Tehran still appeared interested in negotiations despite a sharp rise in tensions between the two countries.
In a statement broadcast on Iranian state television on Thursday, the commander of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), General Mohammad Pakpour, said the force was on the highest level of readiness, declaring it had its “finger on the trigger” following weeks of unrest inside Iran and heightened military posturing by Washington.
The warning came as President Trump confirmed that US naval forces were moving toward the Gulf region, describing the deployment as a precautionary measure. Speaking to reporters aboard Air Force One after attending the World Economic Forum in Davos, he said the United States was sending a “massive fleet” while stressing that he would prefer to avoid escalation.
“We’re watching Iran very closely,” Trump said, adding that diplomacy remained possible.
The rhetoric follows a turbulent period in Iran, where nationwide protests erupted in late December and posed one of the most serious challenges to the country’s leadership recently. The demonstrations, which continued for around two weeks, were met with a sweeping security crackdown and an unprecedented nationwide internet shutdown that has severely limited independent reporting.
Iranian authorities say more than 3,100 people were killed during the unrest. However, human rights organisations dispute the official figures, arguing that the true death toll is significantly higher and accusing security forces of using lethal force against protesters.
The unrest unfolded months after a brief but intense 12-day conflict in June, when Israel—backed militarily by the United States—launched strikes aimed at damaging Iran’s nuclear and ballistic missile capabilities. Since then, President Trump has repeatedly said that further military action remains an option, even as he signals a willingness to pursue talks.
Earlier this week, Trump warned Iran’s leadership that any threat to his life would trigger devastating consequences, following reports of a strike aimed at Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Iranian officials have rejected such claims and accused Washington and Israel of exploiting internal unrest to weaken Tehran.
President Masoud Pezeshkian said on Thursday that foreign powers had fuelled the protests as retaliation for what he described as Iran’s resilience during the recent conflict. While acknowledging that peaceful protest was a legitimate right, he drew a distinction between demonstrators and those accused of violence.
Senior Iranian military figures echoed the confrontational tone. Alongside General Pakpour’s comments, the head of Iran’s joint command headquarters, General Ali Abdollahi Aliabadi, warned that any American strike would render all US interests and military facilities in the region legitimate targets.
Created to safeguard Iran's 1979 Islamic revolution, the Revolutionary Guards play a central role in both domestic security and Iran's regional military operations. The United States and several of its allies have designated them as a terrorist organisation, a designation Tehran strongly rejects.
Rights groups say the Guards were heavily involved in suppressing the recent protests. Internet monitoring organisation NetBlocks reported this week that Iran's digital blackout had exceeded two weeks, complicating efforts to verify casualty numbers and arrests.
Iranian Human Rights, a Norway-based organisation, says it has confirmed at least 3,428 deaths, while the US-based Human Rights Activists News Agency has documented nearly 5,000 fatalities and more than 26,000 arrests. Iranian state media reported that more than 200 additional people were detained on Thursday alone in several provinces.
Despite the escalating language and visible military movements, officials on both sides insist they are leaving room for diplomacy. Whether that space narrows or widens in the coming days may depend on developments both inside Iran and across a region already on edge.
