Trump warns US ‘locked and loaded’ to intervene if Iran violently suppresses protests

Rhetoric between the US and Iran quickly escalated on Friday, after President Donald Trump warned that his country was “locked and loaded” to intervene if Iran violently suppresses protests, prompting Tehran to threaten US troops. Mr Trump’s warning, after days of demonstrations over economic hardship that left at least three people dead, marks the most direct US threat and strongest remarks yet since the protests erupted last Sunday. “If Iran [shoots] and 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,” he wrote on Truthsocial.