Tehran warned the US and Israel against any intervention over nationwide protests in Iran while it sought to placate its citizens, as demonstrations entered their third week and fatalities mounted. 

Saturday marked the third night of intensified nationwide demonstrations, following calls by Reza Pahlavi, the exiled son of Iran’s former shah, to seize city centers and stage strikes. Since the unrests first began on Dec. 28, Donald Trump has repeatedly warned the Iranian regime not to fire on demonstrators, with the US president receiving a briefing in recent days on new options for military strikes.

The Oslo-based Iran Human Rights group said on Sunday it had confirmed the deaths of at least 192 protesters, including nine individuals under 18. Separately, the US-based Human Rights Activists News Agency said deaths linked to the recent unrest had reached 116, with most killed by live ammunition or pellet gunfire. 

On Sunday, Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian struck a conciliatory tone in a state TV interview, offering condolences to families affected by the “tragic consequences” of the unrest.

“Your protests must be heard, and we must address your concerns. Let’s sit down together, hand in hand, and solve the problems,” he said, without offering details on how that would be done. “I promise the dear people, perhaps ninety percent of whom have concerns, that we will address their worries. We will get through this crisis.”

Still, Pezeshkian accused the US and Israel of bringing in “terrorists from abroad,” whom he claimed had set mosques and markets on fire, “beheaded some, and burned others alive.” Other officials took an even harder line. 

“In the event of a US military attack, both the occupied territories and US military and shipping centers will be legitimate targets for us,” Iran Parliament Speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf said in remarks broadcast on state television earlier on Sunday. 

He reiterated a warning that Iran could act preemptively against potential threats. “Within the framework of legitimate self-defense, we do not limit ourselves to responding only after an attack,” he said.

Trump has been briefed in recent days on a range of options for military strikes in Iran, including nonmilitary sites, a White House official said, confirming an earlier New York Times report. The US president is seriously considering authorizing an attack, according to the official.

Israel’s Army Radio reported Sunday that the country’s security establishment views it as unlikely that Iran will attack Israel at this stage. “No such immediate willingness is identified in Israel — but rather an Iranian focus on internal matters,” it said, citing unidentified defense officials. 

Footage from Iranian cities suggests that hundreds of thousands, including many elderly, are defying stern warnings from authorities to stay off the streets, despite a nationwide internet blackout and severe telecommunications restrictions that have blocked calls and text messages since Thursday.