Trump claims protesters have taken control of Iran’s Mashhad, shares video

US President Donald Trump has claimed that protesters have taken control of Mashhad, Iran’s second-largest city, sharing a video on his social media platform Truth Social.

However, no independent sources have been able to confirm whether security forces have fully withdrawn from the city or whether Mashhad is actually under the control of protesters, according to Turkish broadcaster TRT World.

Trump reposted a video from Israel’s Channel 13 television, writing in the caption that more than one million people had protested and that Iran’s second-largest city had fallen under protesters’ control, with government forces fleeing the area.

Mashhad, home to nearly four million people, lies near the borders with Afghanistan and Turkmenistan and houses the Imam Reza Shrine, one of the holiest sites for Shia Muslims. As a result, claims of the city’s fall are being viewed with particular significance.

However, no reliable information has yet emerged to support Trump’s assertion regarding Mashhad.

Meanwhile, Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei issued a stern warning to protesters in a brief address on state television on Friday. He accused protesters of trying to please US President Donald Trump.

Khamenei said protesters were damaging their own streets in an attempt to satisfy the president of another country.

During the speech, members of the audience chanted slogans calling for the destruction of the United States.

Norway-based human rights organisation Iran Human Rights, IHR, reported that at least 45 people have been killed and more than 2,000 arrested so far in the violence.