Iran said on Tuesday it was keeping communication channels with Washington open as Donald Trump weighed how to respond to Tehran’s violent crackdown on nationwide protests, one of the most serious challenges to clerical rule since the 1979 Islamic Revolution.

Late on Monday, Trump escalated pressure by announcing that any country doing business with Iran would face a 25% tariff on its exports to the United States.

“This Order is final and conclusive,” Trump said in a social media post, without clarifying the legal authority or whether the measure would apply to all of Iran’s trading partners.

The White House did not respond to requests for further detail, while Iran’s mission to the United Nations in New York declined to comment on the tariff announcement.

China rejects unilateral sanctions, vows response

Iran, already under heavy US sanctions, exports much of its oil to China, with Turkey, Iraq, the United Arab Emirates and India also among its major trading partners.

China’s embassy in Washington criticised Trump’s approach, saying Beijing would take “all necessary measures” to safeguard its interests and opposed what it called “illicit unilateral sanctions and long-arm jurisdiction.”

Trump warns of possible military action

Trump has repeatedly warned Iran’s leaders that the United States would attack if security forces opened fire on protesters.
On Sunday, he said Washington could meet Iranian officials and confirmed he was in contact with Iran’s opposition.

While airstrikes were among the options being considered, White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said diplomacy remained the preferred path.

“Diplomacy is always the first option for the president,” she told reporters, adding that private messages from Tehran differed from its public rhetoric.

Backchannel talks continue

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi said Tehran was reviewing ideas proposed by Washington, though he described them as incompatible with US threats.

“Communications between (US special envoy Steve) Witkoff and me continued before and after the protests and are still ongoing,” Araqchi told Al Jazeera.

He insisted the situation inside Iran was “under total control,” despite mounting evidence of widespread unrest.

US-based rights group HRANA said by late Monday it had verified 646 deaths, including 505 protesters, 113 military and security personnel, and seven bystanders, while investigating hundreds more reported fatalities. Reuters said it could not independently verify the figures.

Since protests began on December 28, HRANA said 10,721 people have been arrested. The group also reported that families of victims gathered at Tehran’s Behesht Zahra Cemetery, chanting protest slogans at burial sites.

Internet blackout, security crackdown

The flow of information has been severely restricted by an internet blackout imposed since Thursday. However, some Iranians continue to access the web through Starlink, operated by Elon Musk, according to sources inside the country.

Iran’s Ministry of Intelligence said it had detained “terrorist” teams accused of killing paramilitary volunteers, torching mosques and attacking military installations.

Addressing a large crowd at Enqelab Square, parliament speaker Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf said Iran was fighting a war on four fronts -- economic, psychological, military against the U.S. and Israel, and terrorism.

Araqchi said 53 mosques and 180 ambulances had been set on fire since the unrest began, blaming foreign-backed militants for the violence.

US urges citizens to leave Iran

The US Department of State warned that US nationals in Iran face a high risk of questioning, arrest and detention. It advised citizens to consider leaving by land through Armenia or Turkey.

Trump said on Sunday that Iran had called to negotiate over its disputed nuclear programme. Israel and the United States bombed Iranian nuclear sites in a 12-day war in June, and Trump said a meeting was being arranged, though events on the ground could force faster action.

A US official said Trump would meet senior advisers on Tuesday to review options, including military strikes, cyber operations, expanded sanctions and support for online opposition networks.

Oil markets react

Global oil prices hit seven-week highs on Monday amid fears that Iran’s exports could fall due to political turmoil and potential U.S. action.
Iran is still recovering from last year’s war, and its regional influence has weakened following setbacks to allies such as Hezbollah.

The demonstrations began over soaring prices and worsening daily hardships before evolving into open calls for the fall of Iran’s clerical rulers.

Public anger has increasingly focused on the powerful Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, whose vast business empire spans oil, gas, construction and telecommunications.

Despite the scale of unrest, there are no visible splits within Iran’s clerical leadership or security forces, and the opposition remains fragmented with no clear central leadership.