Trump says Iran has killed 75,000 protesters, argues US could end war immediately

President Trump says the Iranian regime has killed some 75,000 protesters over the past eight months, even as he suggested the US could end the conflict immediately.

By World Israel News Staff

President Donald Trump accused Iran’s Islamic regime of killing at least 75,000 protesters over the past eight months, while declaring that the United States could withdraw from its military campaign against Tehran immediately because Iranian forces have been devastated and the country will not be permitted to acquire nuclear weapons.

Speaking at a campaign rally in Park City, Kansas, on Monday, Trump described the scale of the Iranian government’s crackdown on dissent and argued that its use of deadly force had made it nearly impossible for ordinary Iranians to challenge the regime.

“They did a lot of killing. And by the way, in the last eight months, they’ve killed 75,000 minimum protesters,” Trump told supporters.

“Well, it’s a little hard when you got machine guns at the end of the street shooting you down,” he said, explaining why Iranians were not staging further mass demonstrations.

Trump did not identify the source of the 75,000 figure.

The Islamic Republic has repeatedly been accused of concealing the true scale of its crackdown on nationwide demonstrations that began in late December 2025.

Documents reviewed by Iran International earlier this year indicated that more than 36,500 people were killed by security forces during a two-day massacre on January 8 and 9. Subsequent reporting suggested the number could be even higher.

Iranian authorities, however, have acknowledged only a fraction of those deaths.

A United Nations investigation published in September concluded that the crackdown involved crimes against humanity and that the true number of victims was likely substantially higher than the government’s official figures.

Trump also referred to the execution of 19-year-old wrestler Saleh Mohammadi, who was hanged in March alongside two other young men accused of killing police officers during the anti-government protests.

“The world champion wrestler was killed, a young guy,” Trump said.

Mohammadi, who competed internationally and won a bronze medal at a tournament in Russia, was executed alongside Mehdi Ghasemi and Saeed Davoudi.

“They hang them by cranes. They hang them by cranes for all to see,” Trump said, describing public executions in Iran.

Turning to the military campaign against the Islamic Republic, Trump portrayed the operation as an overwhelming American victory, asserting that Iran’s naval and aerial capabilities had been almost entirely eliminated.

The president claimed that Iran’s navy had been sent to the bottom of the sea and that its fleet of 229 fighter jets had been destroyed, along with its radar installations and air defense systems.

He also said successive layers of Iran’s political and military leadership had been eliminated, leaving Washington uncertain about whom it could negotiate with.

“I don’t know who the hell to negotiate with,” Trump said. “Their first level of leaders gone. Their second level of leaders gone.”

According to Trump, surviving Iranian officials had sought assurances that American forces would not target them as they had their predecessors.

Despite the scale of the campaign, Trump suggested that Washington had already achieved enough to end its involvement in the conflict.

“Somebody said you could leave right now. It’s true. We could leave right now. They’re not going to have a nuclear weapon,” he declared.

Trump also renewed his criticism of NATO members for refusing to support the American military campaign, claiming that his request for assistance had deliberately been designed to test the alliance’s willingness to stand alongside Washington.

“We asked for help that we didn’t need,” he said, explaining that he wanted to determine whether NATO countries would reciprocate decades of American military protection.

“They weren’t there to help,” Trump complained, arguing that the refusal was something the United States could not forget.

The president’s comments came amid growing speculation about whether Washington and Israel could launch another round of strikes against Iran if diplomatic efforts fail.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth made an unannounced visit to Israel on Monday, reportedly meeting Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu at an air base in the country’s south to discuss Iran.