Zürcher Nachrichten - Iran protester not sentenced to death, Trump says to 'watch it and see'

Trump had repeatedly talked in recent days about coming to the aid of the Iranian people over the crackdown on protests that rights groups say has left at least 3,428 people dead.

The demonstrations were sparked by economic grievances but evolved rapidly into a nationwide push to unseat the Islamic republic in place since 1979.

The protests, which have seen thousands of people take to the streets in all corners of Iran against a government with zero tolerance for dissent, have constituted the greatest challenge the ruling theocratic system has faced.

Up until Wednesday, the United States was threatening military action against the authorities should they carry out the death penalty against people arrested over the protests.

In an announcement at the White House, Trump said he had now received assurances from "very important sources on the other side" that executions would not go ahead.

All eyes were on protester Erfan Soltani, 26, in prison in Karaj outside Tehran since his arrest, who is facing charges of propaganda against Iran's Islamic system and acting against national security.

On Thursday, the Iranian judiciary said Soltani has "not been sentenced to death" and if he is convicted, "the punishment, according to the law, will be imprisonment, as the death penalty does not exist for such charges".

The developments came hours ahead of a UN Security Council meeting on Iran later on Thursday, which was requested by the US.

"They've said the killing has stopped and the executions won't take place -- there were supposed to be a lot of executions today and that the executions won't take place -- and we're going to find out," Trump said.

The comments sent oil prices plunging on Thursday, as concerns eased of a looming supply shock in energy markets. Iran makes up around three percent of global oil production.

Asked by an AFP reporter in the Oval Office if US military action was now off the table, Trump replied: "We're going to watch it and see what the process is."

- 'No hanging today or tomorrow' -

Iran's judiciary chief on Wednesday vowed fast-track trials for those arrested, and prosecutors have said some detainees will face capital charges of "waging war against God".

State media reported hundreds of arrests and the detention of a foreign national for espionage, without giving details.

In an interview with US network Fox News, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said there would be "no hanging today or tomorrow", while accusing US ally Israel of orchestrating violence in Iran, without providing evidence.

Araghchi contends the protests devolved into widespread violence between January 7 and 10 because they were infiltrated by external "elements who had a plan to create a big number of killings in order to provoke President Trump to enter into this conflict and start a new war against Iran".

The authorities imposed an unprecedented internet blackout on January 8, as protests exploded in size and intensity, severely hampering the demonstrators' ability to communicate with each other and the outside world.

Rights monitors say authorities are using the blackout to carry out their harshest repression in years.

Iran's Minister of Justice Amin Hossein Rahimi echoed Araghchi's allegation, telling state news agencies that after January 7, "those weren't protests any longer" and anyone who was arrested on the streets then "was definitely a criminal".

- 'Full control' -

Araghchi said the Iranian government was "in full control" and reported an atmosphere of "calm" after what he called three days of "terrorist operation".

Iran also struck a defiant tone about responding to any US attack, as Washington appeared to draw down staff at a base in Qatar that Tehran targeted in a strike last year.

Iran targeted the Al Udeid base in June in retaliation for US strikes on its nuclear facilities.

Ali Shamkhani, a senior adviser to Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, warned Trump the strike showed "Iran's will and capability to respond to any attack".

Fears of possible US military action continued to rile the region.

The British government said its embassy in Tehran had been "temporarily closed", while the US embassy in Saudi Arabia urged staff to exercise caution and avoid military installations, and India's government urged its citizens to leave the country.

Germany's Lufthansa on Wednesday said its flights would avoid Iranian and Iraqi airspace "until further notice" after the US threats against Iran.

- 'Unprecedented level of brutality' -

G7 nations said Wednesday they were "deeply alarmed at the high level of reported deaths and injuries" and warned of further sanctions if the crackdown continued.

Monitor NetBlocks said Iran's internet blackout had lasted over 156 hours.

Despite the shutdown, new videos, with locations verified by AFP, showed bodies lined up in the Kahrizak morgue south of Tehran, wrapped in black bags as distraught relatives searched for loved ones.

The US-based Institute for the Study of War said authorities were using "an unprecedented level of brutality to suppress protests", noting reports of protest activity had sharply declined.

Iran Human Rights, based in Norway, said security forces had killed at least 3,428 protesters and arrested more than 10,000.

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F.Schneider--NZN