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Iranian Judiciary Begins Trial of Protesters

Students protest at the Sharif University of Technology in Tehran (Twitter)
Students protest at the Sharif University of Technology in Tehran (Twitter)
    London, Tehran – Asharq Al-Awsat
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Iranian Judiciary Begins Trial of Protesters

Students protest at the Sharif University of Technology in Tehran (Twitter)
Students protest at the Sharif University of Technology in Tehran (Twitter)

Iranian authorities are slapping charges of an offense that carries the death penalty against protesters who partook in anti-regime demonstrations sparked by the death of Mahsa Amini after her arrest by the morality police in Tehran.

Iran’s judiciary chief Gholam Hossein Mohseni Ejei announced that courts will trial detainees in Tehran and some other provinces. He, however, did not point to the number of individuals facing charges.

According to IRNA, Iran’s official news agency, Tehran prosecutor Ali Salehi said that indictments have been issued for 315 people on charges of “congregating and colluding with the intention of acting against the country's security” and “propaganda against the system.”

Iranian media reported that the authorities began trying the detainees in the city of Karaj, west of the capital, Tehran, as of Monday morning.

Iran’s judiciary issued indictments for 201 people over their participation in anti government protests in the central province of Alborz.

Hossein Fazeli Harikandi, the chief justice of the province, said that those indicted are the “main and active agents,” mainly because they invited people to protest.

He did not give an exact number for how many people were detained, but he said that around 68% of those taken into custody had already been released on bail, indicating more than 628 people in total had been rounded up.

More than 600 Iranian and international lawyers and human rights figures had sent a letter to United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres, calling for the formation of an independent commission to investigate human rights violations in Iran.

In the letter, the human rights defenders referred to Iranian authorities using excessive force, live ammunition, and killing civilians, as well as the shooting of children participating in protests or bystanders. The letter also expressed concern about the fate of detainees and political prisoners.

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South Korea's President Lee to Visit China from January 4 to 7

South Korean President Lee Jae Myung delivers a speech during a press conference to mark his first 30 days in office at Yeongbingwan of Blue House on July 3, 2025 in Seoul, South Korea. Kim Min-Hee/Pool via REUTERS/File Photo Purchase Licensing Rights
South Korean President Lee Jae Myung delivers a speech during a press conference to mark his first 30 days in office at Yeongbingwan of Blue House on July 3, 2025 in Seoul, South Korea. Kim Min-Hee/Pool via REUTERS/File Photo Purchase Licensing Rights

South Korean President Lee Jae Myung will visit China from January 4 to 7 and meet Chinese counterpart Xi Jinping, the Blue House said on Tuesday, aiming to keep up ‌momentum to ‌restore ties, Reuters said.

Making ‌his ⁠first visit ‌to China since he took office in June, Lee will also discuss plans with Xi to reach concrete outcomes in areas such ⁠as supply chains, presidential spokesperson Kang ‌Yu-jung told a ‍briefing.

At ‍a summit of the ‍leaders when Xi visited South Korea recently on the first trip by a Chinese leader in 11 years, Lee sought his help in ⁠efforts to resume talks with North Korea, Lee's office has said.

In January, Lee will also visit the Chinese commercial hub of Shanghai and join events to build cooperation on start-ups, Kang added.

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Trump Says US Hit Dock for Venezuela Drug Boats

US President Donald Trump, with pharmaceutical executives, delivers remarks on lowering the prices of drugs and pharmaceuticals during an announcement in the Roosevelt Room of the White House in Washington, DC, USA, 19 December 2025. EPA/WILL OLIVER / POOL
US President Donald Trump, with pharmaceutical executives, delivers remarks on lowering the prices of drugs and pharmaceuticals during an announcement in the Roosevelt Room of the White House in Washington, DC, USA, 19 December 2025. EPA/WILL OLIVER / POOL
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Trump Says US Hit Dock for Venezuela Drug Boats

US President Donald Trump, with pharmaceutical executives, delivers remarks on lowering the prices of drugs and pharmaceuticals during an announcement in the Roosevelt Room of the White House in Washington, DC, USA, 19 December 2025. EPA/WILL OLIVER / POOL
US President Donald Trump, with pharmaceutical executives, delivers remarks on lowering the prices of drugs and pharmaceuticals during an announcement in the Roosevelt Room of the White House in Washington, DC, USA, 19 December 2025. EPA/WILL OLIVER / POOL

The United States hit and destroyed a docking area for alleged Venezuela drug boats, President Donald Trump said Monday, in what could amount to the first land strike of the military campaign against trafficking from Latin America.

The US leader's confirmation of the incident comes as he ramps up a pressure campaign against Venezuela's leftist President Nicolas Maduro, who has accused Trump of seeking regime change, said AFP.

"There was a major explosion in the dock area where they load the boats up with drugs," he told reporters at his Mar-a-Lago resort in Florida as he hosted Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

"So we hit all the boats and now we hit the area, it's the implementation area, that's where they implement. And that is no longer around."

Trump would not say if it was a military or CIA operation or where the strike occurred, noting only that it was "along the shore."

Sources familiar with the operation told CNN and the New York Times that the CIA had carried out a drone strike on a port facility.

The strike was believed to be targeting the Venezuelan gang Tren de Aragua, though no one was present at the time of the operation and there were no casualties, the US media outlets reported.

There has been no official comment from the Venezuelan government.

The Pentagon earlier referred questions to the White House. The White House did not respond to requests for comment from AFP.

Asked on Monday if he had spoken to Maduro recently, Trump said they had talked "pretty recently" but that "nothing much comes out of it."

Trump revealed details of the operation after being asked to elaborate on comments he made in a radio interview broadcast Friday that seemed to mention a land strike for the first time.

"They have a big plant or a big facility where they send, you know, where the ships come from," Trump told billionaire supporter John Catsimatidis on the WABC radio station in New York.

"Two nights ago, we knocked that out. So we hit them very hard."

Trump did not say in the interview where the facility was located or give any other details.

Trump has been threatening for weeks that ground strikes on drug cartels in the region would start "soon," but this is the first apparent example.

US forces have also carried out numerous strikes in both the Caribbean Sea and eastern Pacific Ocean since September, targeting what Washington says are drug-smuggling boats.

The administration has provided no evidence that the targeted boats were involved in drug trafficking, however, prompting debate about the legality of these operations.

International law experts and rights groups say the strikes likely amount to extrajudicial killings, a charge that Washington denies.

After Trump spoke Monday, the US military announced on social media that it had carried out another strike on a boat in the Eastern Pacific, killing two and bringing the total killed in the maritime campaign to at least 107.

It did not specify where exactly the strike took place.

The Trump administration has been ramping up pressure on Maduro, accusing the Venezuelan leader of running a drug cartel himself and imposing an oil tanker blockade.

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Iran President Tells Government Listen to Protesters 'Legitimate Demands'

Iranian shopkeepers and traders protest against the economic conditions, as tear gas is fired by anti-riot police in Tehran, Iran, 29 December 2025. EPA/STRINGER
Iranian shopkeepers and traders protest against the economic conditions, as tear gas is fired by anti-riot police in Tehran, Iran, 29 December 2025. EPA/STRINGER
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Iran President Tells Government Listen to Protesters 'Legitimate Demands'

Iranian shopkeepers and traders protest against the economic conditions, as tear gas is fired by anti-riot police in Tehran, Iran, 29 December 2025. EPA/STRINGER
Iranian shopkeepers and traders protest against the economic conditions, as tear gas is fired by anti-riot police in Tehran, Iran, 29 December 2025. EPA/STRINGER

Iran's president urged his government to listen to the "legitimate demands" of protesters, state media reported Tuesday, after several days of demonstrations by shopkeepers in Tehran over economic hardships.

Shopkeepers in the capital had shut their stores for the second day in a row on Monday, after Iran's embattled currency hit new lows on the unofficial market, reported AFP.

The US dollar was trading at around 1.42 million rials on Sunday -- compared to 820,000 rials a year ago -- and the euro nearing 1.7 million rials, according to price monitoring websites.

"I have asked the Interior Minister to listen to the legitimate demands of the protesters by engaging in dialogue with their representatives so that the government can do everything in its power to resolve the problems and act responsibly," President Masoud Pezeshkian said, according to the state-run IRNA news agency.

Protesters "are demanding immediate government intervention to rein in exchange-rate fluctuations and set out a clear economic strategy", the pro-labor news agency ILNA reported Monday.

Price fluctuations are paralyzing the sales of some imported goods, with both sellers and buyers preferring to postpone transactions until the outlook becomes clearer, AFP correspondents noted.

"Continuing to do business under these conditions has become impossible," ILNA quoted protesters as saying.

The conservative-aligned Fars news agency released images showing a crowd of demonstrators occupying a major thoroughfare in central Tehran, known for its many shops.

Another photograph appeared to show tear gas being used to disperse protesters.

"Minor physical clashes were reported... between some protesters and the security forces," Fars said, warning that such gatherings could lead to instability.

-- Battered economy --

Iranian Chief Justice Gholamhossein Mohseni Ejei called for "the swift punishment of those responsible for currency fluctuations", the justice ministry's Mizan agency reported Monday.

The government has also announced the replacement of the central bank governor.

"By decision of the president, Abdolnasser Hemmati will be appointed governor of the Central Bank," presidency communications official Mehdi Tabatabaei posted on X.

Hemmati is a former economy and finance minister who was dismissed by parliament in March because of the sharp depreciation of the rial.

Pezeshkian delivered on Sunday the budget for the next Persian year to parliament, vowing to fight inflation and the high cost of living.

In December, inflation stood at 52 percent year-on-year, according to official statistics. But this figure still falls far short of many price increases, especially for basic necessities.

The country's economy, already battered by decades of Western sanctions, was further strained after the United Nations in late September reinstated international sanctions linked to the country's nuclear program that were lifted 10 years ago.

Western powers and Israel accuse Iran of seeking to acquire nuclear weapons, a charge Tehran denies.