As protests continued to grow across Iran on Tuesday, the country’s reestablished National Defense Council issued a statement that appeared to leave the door open to preemptive military action, warning that Tehran would not necessarily limit itself to retaliatory responses if it perceives concrete threats to its security.
In a statement published by state media in the afternoon, the council said that Iran’s “security, independence, and territorial integrity” constitute an “uncrossable redline,” and that any encroachment on those interests would be met with an “appropriate, targeted, and decisive response.”
“Within the framework of legitimate self-defense, the Islamic Republic of Iran does not consider itself limited to reacting after the action and considers objective signs of threat to be part of the security equation,” the statement said.
The message, while stopping short of naming specific adversaries, has raised questions over whether Tehran is signaling its readiness to carry out preemptive strikes against perceived enemies, including Israel or the United States, amid heightened tensions in the region following June’s 12-day war with Israel and the unrest inside Iran.
“The intensification of threatening rhetoric and interference, which goes beyond mere verbal posturing, can be interpreted as hostile conduct,” the statement said, adding that continued escalation would be met with a “proportionate, firm, and deterrent response,” with “full responsibility for the consequences” resting with those behind it.
The statement concluded with a Quranic verse often cited by Iranian officials in the context of retaliation: “So whoever transgresses against you, transgress against him in the same measure as he has transgressed against you.”
While the council did not explicitly reference Israel or the United States, the timing of the statement comes days after US President Donald Trump warned the Islamic Republic regime against violence toward protesters. In a January 2 post on his Truth Social platform, Trump said that if Iran “kills peaceful protesters,” the United States “will come to their rescue.” Several senior US officials have echoed similar warnings in recent weeks.
Iranian officials have repeatedly stated that statements from foreign leaders threatening action or encouraging demonstrations are tantamount to foreign interference in the country’s internal affairs. The Defense Council said that any action against Iran’s stability or sovereignty would be treated as hostile.
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