US Trump Tones Down Rhetoric on Iran: "I Heard There Will Be No Executions of Protesters"

[Financial News] Donald Trump, President of the United States of America (US), who had suggested intervening in the anti-government protests that have been taking place for more than two weeks in the Islamic Republic of Iran, suddenly softened his tone and said he would watch how the situation unfolds.
According to the pan-Arab outlet Al Jazeera, Donald Trump said at a White House event on the 14th (local time), "We have heard that the killing (of protesters) in the Islamic Republic of Iran has stopped." He added, "We have been notified in a very strong way. However, we are going to find out what exactly all of that means." Claiming he had heard this from a "credible source," he addressed the controversy over reports that the Iranian authorities would execute protesters on the 14th, insisting, "There is no plan for executions, and there will be no single or multiple executions."
Donald Trump stated, "If such a thing had happened, everyone would have been outraged," and continued, "But I have just received information that the killing has stopped and that the executions have been halted." He went on to say, "The executions that people have been talking about over the past few days will not take place. Today was supposed to be the day of the executions."
When asked where he had obtained the information that attacks on protesters in the Islamic Republic of Iran had ceased, Donald Trump replied that it came from "a very important source on the other side," adding, "I hope it is true." In response to a question about whether he was ruling out military action against the Islamic Republic of Iran, he said, "We will see how the process unfolds," but added, "We have received very good news from people who know very well what is happening there (in Iran)."
Donald Trump, who last year ordered strikes on nuclear facilities in the Islamic Republic of Iran, had hinted at possible military intervention after large-scale anti-government protests broke out there last month. On the 13th, he encouraged anti-government protesters in the Islamic Republic of Iran on the social media platform Truth Social, writing, "Help is on the way." On the same day, in an interview with CBS Broadcasting Inc. (CBS), he said of the reported plans to execute protesters in the Islamic Republic of Iran, "If they do that, we will take very strong action." Some foreign media outlets reported on the 14th that the United States Armed Forces (US Armed Forces) had advised the withdrawal of some personnel from Al Udeid Air Base, the largest US base in the Middle East, located in Qatar.
Donald Trump’s latest remarks stand in stark contrast to other foreign media reports that the authorities in the Islamic Republic of Iran are harshly cracking down on the anti-government protests. Iran Human Rights (IHR), a human rights organization based in Norway, said in a statement on the 14th that at least 3,428 participants in the protests had been killed as of that day, the 18th day of the demonstrations. This figure is about five times higher than the 734 deaths IHR had counted the previous day. CBS, citing a source, estimated that the number of deaths related to the protests in the Islamic Republic of Iran was between 12,000 and 20,000. The Associated Press (AP) reported on the 14th, citing Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting (IRIB), that the Iranian government could swiftly execute detained protesters. On the same day, Gholam-Hossein Mohseni-Eje'i, the Chief Justice of Iran, visited the prison where protesters are being held and said, "If we want to act, we must do it now. If we want to do something, we must do it quickly," suggesting that executions could be expedited. He stressed, "If we delay, in two or three months it will not have the same effect."
pjw@fnnews.com Park Jong-won Reporter