US President Donald Trump is expected to assist Iranians who are protesting nationwide against the Islamic Republic regime, several sources familiar with the details of the discussions held in recent days told The Jerusalem Post on Sunday.
“Trump has essentially decided to help the protesters in Iran. What he has not yet decided is the ‘how’ and the ‘when,’” they said.
On Saturday, Trump wrote on X/Twitter that Iran wants freedom, and that the US is ready to help.
In recent days, discussions have been taking place in Washington regarding assisting protesters, with several options on the table.
“The spectrum ranges from a military option, namely strikes against regime targets, to cyber support against the regime, to providing Starlink systems to help protesters,” one source told the Post.
“While the Trump administration does not believe that the Iranian regime is collapsing, it definitely sees problems and cracks that did not exist a week ago,” the source added.
Washington intensified efforts following images emerging from Iranian protests over the weekend. Until that point, the Trump administration did not believe the protests had crossed a certain threshold that would cause the regime to panic.
However, the Internet shutdown, the large number of protesters, and the harsh repression measures, which have reportedly led to at least 2,000 deaths, prompted senior administration officials to seriously consider helping the protesters.
Israel takes decision to not intervene publicly in Iran protests
Also on Sunday, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu convened a small group of ministers and senior security officials to discuss the situation in Iran, among other issues.
Israel has made several decisions at this stage, namely not to intervene publicly in Iran, to allow the US to lead any assistance measures for protesters, and to prepare for the possibility that Iran may decide to launch ballistic missiles at Israel to divert attention from the protests.
“Israel is closely monitoring what is happening in Iran. The protesters for freedom have spread across the country. The people of Israel, and the entire world, are in awe of the tremendous courage of Iran’s citizens,” Netanyahu said at the meeting.
“Israel supports their struggle for freedom and strongly condemns the mass slaughter of innocent civilians. We all hope that the Persian nation will soon be freed from the yoke of tyranny, and when that day comes, Israel and Iran will once again become loyal partners in building a future of prosperity and peace for both peoples,” he added.
Netanyahu also spoke with US Secretary of State Marco Rubio over the weekend.