AMNA NAWAZ: Welcome to the "News Hour."

President Trump today threatened to intervene# in Iran if the regime kills peaceful pro.. which it has already done.

Over the past six days,# demonstrations that started in Tehran have spread## throughout the country.

The Iranian government# has cracked down, as it has in the past.

Protests in Iran are now in their sixth day.# What began as a response to skyrocketing## inflation has now transformed into# a national call for systemic reform,## expanding from Tehran's Grand Bazaar to# nearly 17 provinces across the country.## At least 44 people have been arrested so# far, Including Kurdish activist Mahsa Zarei.

And at least eight people have been killed,# including a 15-year-old child.

In the streets,## protesters chant "Death to the dictator."

And# students have now joined the demonstrations.## As in recent uprisings, young# Iranians are on the forefront.

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian# says he has -- quote -- "tasked the## minister of interior to hear the legitimate# demands of protesters through dialogue."

Meanwhile, Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas# Araghchi and President Trump traded statements.

Trump posting this morning -- quote -- "If# Iran violently kills peaceful protesters,## which is their custom, the United# States of America will come to their## rescue.

We are locked and loaded and ready to go."

Araghchi responded, calling Trump's# statement "reckless and dangerous."

For more on the protests, we turn now to two# people who follow developments in Iran closely.## Roya Boroumand is the co-founder and executive# director of the Abdorrahman Boroumand Center.## That's a nonprofit promoting human rights and# democracy in Iran.

And Holly Dagres is a senior## fellow at the Washington Institute for Near East# Policy.

That's a think tank in Washington, D.C.

Welcome to you both.

And, Holly, I will begin with yo.. demonstrations in Iran before.

How# do these protests today compare to## those we have seen in the past in terms of# the scale?

And, also, what sparked them?

HOLLY DAGRES, Senior Fellow, The Washington# Institute for Near East Policy: Well, these## protests are significant.

They're the largest# since the 2022 Woman.. And while they were triggered by# a different event, in the economic## one related to the collapse of the Iranian# rial against the U.S.

dollar on December 28,## the grievances of the Iranian people taking# to the streets are very much the same,## which is systemic mismanagement,# corruption, and repression.

And, for them, they see that all their woes and# problems are with the Islamic Republic itself.

And## that's why you're seeing all these anti-regime# trance coming from the people, because they## believe that the Islamic Republic needs to go.# And they felt this way for a very long time now.

AMNA NAWAZ: Roya, what about you?

As you watch# these unfold, what stands out to you about how## the protests are evolving, especially the fact# that they're coming online now just a few years,## as Holly noted, after those 2022 Woman, Life,# Freedom protests after the death of Mahsa Amini?

ROYA BOROUMAND, Co-Founder and Executive Director,## The intensity of the repression of the 2022# protests and following the 2022 protests was such## that one would expect people to need a few years# before forgetting and recovering before coming out## in the streets.

So it is early, if you will, based# on the experience we have from previous years.

But, at the same time, the situation,# the economic situation is so bad.

The## inflation is so bad, and so many people# are living under the poverty line that## these outbursts are not surprising in that sense.# And the fact that they happen more in areas where## the people are much more vulnerable economically# and socially is also significant, I think.

AMNA NAWAZ: Holly, Roya mentioned there the# brutality of the crackdown to those 2022 protests.

Are you worried and do you expect that we# will see the same from the Iranian regime## this time?

And, also, are there demands from the# protesters that this regime can actually meet?

HOLLY DAGRES: Well, we have seen the brutality of## the Islamic Republic for 46 years.# We talked about the 2022 uprising.

And the U.N.

fact-fighting mission at# the time found that the Islamic Republic## had committed crimes against humanity# against the protesters during Woman,## Life, Freedom.

So they do have that# ability to crack down on in same manner.

And one of the tools of repression that the# Islamic Republic uses is mass executions.

We## have seen that, in 2025, they had the highest rate# of executions in over a decade with 200 -- 2,045.## And so this is a tool that they use to silence# dissent and exactly what they will be doing.

And in terms of addressing the needs of the# protesters, we have seen President Masoud## Pezeshkian tweet on X, which is blocked by# the Islamic Republic, and Iranians have to## use circumvention tools to get online, that# they would meet the needs of the protesters.

But the truth is, their needs cannot# be met by the clerical establishment## because they have not had opportunity for# years to make changes and they have not.## And Iranians believe that reform# has been dead for a long time.

AMNA NAWAZ: Roya, what about the# reaction that we have seen from the U.S.,## specifically from President Donald Trump# threatening U.S.

intervention if peaceful## protesters are killed?

Is that kind of# response something that protesters want## to see?

And you think there's a real# possibility there for U.S.

action?

ROYA BOROUMAND: Statements by# a U.S.

president matter a lot.

And they matter, in the sense that you also have# to understand that the battle that the Iranians## are fighting is a battle that is physical in# the street, in which they have their lives to## offer and some stones probably.

But the state has# resources and has arms and has foreign support.

And, in that sense, when leaders of# democracies pay attention to what's## happening, it strengthens the morale of the# population.

So it has to be clear what the## statement of the president means.

Does# this mean that they're going to bombard## somewhere?

Does this mean that the endgame# would be to overthrow the Islamic Republic?

I think these are very sensitive times.

Iran has# passed laws to punish with deaths very peaceful## activities that are related to protests,# are related to information about protests## as acting in coordination with a# foreign state and a hostile state,## basically can lead any action to the gallows.

So, in that context, these kind of statements# have to be not vague and very clear about what## consequences the leaders of a country will# face if they continue to shoot people.

But## attention to victims is good.

That is something# that the state doesn't want, because the state## wants to say to the people fighting in the# streets that you are alone, no one cares.

AMNA NAWAZ: Holly, I will# give you the last word here.

How do you look at the threats made by President## Trump?

And do protesters want to# see some kind of U.S.

intervention?

HOLLY DAGRES: It's really hard to interpret what## the Trump administration actually wants# to do with any action, if at all any.

And I think that if they were not to act on# their words and there was a mass crackdown,## this could very much be similar to the# Obama administration's red line for Syria.## So, I mean, it's a really mixed bagged# about how the president wants to respond.

But we've also seen precedent where he has# responded by assassinating being Quds Force## commander Qasem Soleimani, January 3 being# its six-year anniversary, attacking the## country's nuclear facilities.

So he's a real# maverick when it comes to this sort of thing.

AMNA NAWAZ: Holly Dagres and Roya Boroumand,# we thank you so much for joining us.

(CROSSTALK) ROYA BOROUMAND: Thank you.# Thank you for having us.