Iranian State TV aired footage on Monday (January 12) of large crowds attending pro-government rallies across the country.
Iranian authorities accused the U.S. and Israel of fomenting trouble and called for the nationwide rally on Monday after a violent crackdown on protests that have posed one of the biggest challenges to clerical rule since the 1979 Islamic Revolution.
Trump said on Sunday (January 11) the U.S. may meet Iranian officials and he was in contact with Iran's opposition, while piling pressure on its leaders, including threatening possible military action over lethal violence against protesters.
U.S.-based rights group HRANA said it had verified the deaths of 544 people - 496 protesters and 48 security personnel, with 10,681 people arrested since the protests began on December 28 and spread around the country.
Reuters was unable to independently verify the tallies. The flow of information from the Islamic Republic has been hampered by an internet blackout since Thursday (January 8).
Iran's leaders are facing fierce demonstrations that evolved from complaints about dire economic hardships to defiant calls for the fall of the deeply entrenched clerical establishment, and with the country's regional clout much reduced.
