Watch: Trump claims the killing of Iranian protesters has “stopped” even as Tehran indicates executions will be carried out

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump said Wednesday that he made a vague statement that he was told “with good authority” that plans to carry out executions in Iran have been halted, even as Tehran signaled speedy trials and executions in its crackdown on protesters.

Watch Trump’s remarks in the video player above.

The US President’s claims, which come with few details, come as he has told Iranians protesting in recent days that “help is on the way” and that his administration will “act accordingly” to strike back at the Iranian government. But Trump did not provide any details about how the United States would respond, and it was not clear whether his comments on Wednesday indicated he would delay taking action.

“We’ve been told the killing in Iran has stopped, stopped, stopped,” Trump said at the White House as he signed executive orders and legislation. “And there is no plan to lynching, lynching, or lynching – so I was told that from good authority.”

Trump did not specify where he obtained this information, but only described it as “very important sources on the other side.”

Trump said he would “find out” later if that was true, but did not explain how.

“I hope that’s true,” he said. “Who knows?”

When asked if that meant he did not plan to take any action against the Iranian government, Trump said: “We’ll watch it and see what the process is. But we got a very good statement from people who are aware of what’s going on.”

The president on Tuesday consulted with his national security team about next steps after telling reporters he believed the killing in Iran was “significant.”

Vice President J.D. Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio and key officials on the White House National Security Council began meeting last Friday to develop options for Trump, ranging from a diplomatic approach to military strikes.

The US-based Human Rights Activists News Agency reported that a crackdown by Iranian security forces on the demonstrations led to the deaths of at least 2,586 people.

Iranian officials indicated on Wednesday that suspects detained in the nationwide protests would face speedy trials and executions, while the Islamic Republic promised a “decisive response” if the United States or Israel intervened in the internal unrest.

The threats emerged when some personnel at a major US military base in Qatar were advised to evacuate by Wednesday evening after Trump’s warnings of possible military action escalated due to the killing of peaceful demonstrators.

Mohammad Pakpour, the commander of Iran’s paramilitary Revolutionary Guard, repeated Iranian claims, without providing evidence, that the United States and Israel incited the protests and were the real killers of the protesters and security forces who died in the unrest, according to Iran’s semi-official Tasnim news agency.

He added that these countries “will receive a response in due course.”

Earlier on Wednesday, Gholamhossein Mohseni-Eji, the head of Iran’s judiciary, said the government must move quickly to punish more than 18,000 people arrested through speedy trials and executions. Mohseni Ejaee’s comments about speedy trials and executions were contained in a video broadcast online by Iranian state television.

“If we want to do something, we have to do it now. If we want to do something, we have to do it quickly,” he said. “If it’s too late, two or three months, it won’t have the same impact. If we want to do something, we have to do it quickly.”

The comments represent a direct challenge to Trump, who warned Iran against executions in an interview with CBS that aired Tuesday. “If they do something like this, we will take very strong action,” Trump said.

Amiri reported from New York.