Trump says he'll take 'very strong action' against Iran if protesters are hanged

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Trump promises 'very strong action' if Iranian regime begins hanging protesters

President Donald Trump told CBS News' Tony Dokoupil the U.S. will take ‘very strong action’ against Iran if its regime begins hanging protesters.

President Donald Trump warned his administration will take "very strong action" against Iran if the regime begins hanging protesters. 

"We don't want to see what's happening in Iran happen," Trump told CBS News' Tony Dokoupil Tuesday. 

"And, you know, if they want to have protests, that's one thing. When they start killing thousands of people, and now you're telling me about hanging, we'll see how that works out for them. It's not going to work out good," he continued.

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President Donald Trump visits a Ford production center in Dearborn, Mich., Jan. 13, 2026. (Reuters/Evelyn Hockstein)

Dokoupil began the exchange by asking Trump what he meant with his viral declaration to the Iranian people that "help is on the way."

"Well, there's a lot of help on the way and in different forms, including economic help from our standpoint, and not gonna help Iran very much," Trump responded. "And we put Iran out of business with their nuclear capacity, and, now, depending on what's actually happening, nobody's been able to give us accurate numbers about how many people they've killed. But it looks like it could be a pretty substantial number. And that's gonna be a lot of problems for them."

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President Donald Trump tells "CBS Evening News" anchor Tony Dokoupil his administration will take "very strong action" against Iran if the regime begins hanging protesters. (Screenshot/CBS News)

The CBS anchor then mentioned the regime's alleged threat of hanging protesters beginning Wednesday, pressing Trump whether that would cross his "red line."

"I haven't heard about the hanging. If they hang them, you're gonna see some things that — I don't know where you come from and what your thought process is, but you'll perhaps be very happy," Trump said.

"What do you mean by that?" Dokoupil asked.

"We will take very strong action if they do such a thing. We will take very strong action," Trump responded.

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There are reports that Iran's Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, has ordered the killing of thousands of protesters as unrest has erupted throughout the country. (Getty Images)

Fox News' Lindsay Kornick contributed to this report.

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