Pence: The President and I Support Peaceful Protesters in Iran

Mike Pence, the Vice President of the United States, wrote on his Twitter account: "The President and I stand with the peaceful protesters in Iran who seek freedom, and we condemn the arrest of innocent people." Mr. Pence added: "It is time for the Iranian regime to end its terrorist activities, corruption, and disregard for human rights." Following protests against the government and economic conditions in various cities in Iran, Donald Trump, the President of the United States, on December 29, called on the Islamic Republic of Iran to respect the rights of its people, including the right to free speech. Mr. Trump warned that the world is watching the Iranian government's behavior towards its citizens. In response, Bahram Qasemi, the spokesman for the Iranian Foreign Ministry, on Saturday, December 30, sharply criticized the recent statements of the U.S. President regarding the recent protests, calling them "opportunistic and hypocritical." Some members of Congress, including Senator McCain, Senator Tom Cotton, Senator Ted Cruz, and Paul Ryan, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, have expressed support for the protests in Iran. The protests and demonstrations that began three days ago in several cities in Iran expanded on Saturday evening. Protests in several cities turned violent with the intervention of security forces, and according to the political-security deputy governor of Lorestan, two people died on Saturday night in this province. Eyewitnesses also reported the beating of students at Tehran University. Protesters in Tehran chanted slogans such as: "Death to Khamenei" and "Referendum, referendum, this is the people's slogan," and "Reformists and Principlists, the story is over."