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Secretary of State Marco Rubio recently revoked Iranian senior officials and their family members’ privilege to travel to the U.S., citing ongoing oppression by the regime.
Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei’s regime is accused of killing more than 6,200 protesters since Dec. 28, with nearly 17,100 additional arrests as internet communications remain halted, according to the Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA).
“As the people of Iran continue to fight for their basic rights, [Rubio] took action this week to revoke the privilege of Iranian senior officials and their family members to be in the United States,” the State Department wrote in an X post.
“Those who profit from the Iranian regime’s brutal oppression are not welcome to benefit from our immigration system.”
In addition to the potential civil rights violations in Iran, tensions have flared between Khamenei and President Donald Trump as the U.S. attempts to strike a nuclear deal.
Demonstrators in London burn pictures of Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei outside the Iranian embassy during a rally in support of nationwide protests Jan. 12 in Iran. (Toby Melville/Reuters)
Iranian Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi warned on Wednesday the nation’s military is “prepared — with their fingers on the trigger — to immediately and powerfully respond to ANY aggression against our beloved land, air, and sea.”
Araghchi claimed Iran has “always welcomed” a mutually beneficial, fair and equitable nuclear deal that would ensure Iran’s rights to peaceful nuclear technology and guarantee no nuclear weapons.
Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, sits next to a senior military official in Iran. (Getty Images)
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Trump fired back on Truth Social, warning a “massive” armada was heading to Iran “with speed and violence, if necessary.”
“Time is running out, it is truly of the essence!” Trump wrote in a post. “As I told Iran once before, MAKE A DEAL! They didn’t, and there was ‘Operation Midnight Hammer,’ a major destruction of Iran. The next attack will be far worse! Don’t make that happen again.”
The president said Thursday night it would be “great” if the U.S. did not have to use the military fleet.
The state tax building burned during Iran’s protests on a street in Tehran, Iran, Jan. 19, 2026. (Majid Asgaripour/WANA via Reuters)
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The State Department on Wednesday also demanded Tehran overturn the death penalty for 19-year-old Saleh Mohammadi, a decorated Iranian wrestler who was arrested while peacefully protesting against the regime earlier this month.
Fox News Digital’s Alex Nitzberg contributed to this report.
