On Friday, an Iranian official said 52 people had been arrested in the previous day's protests against high prices in the city of Mashhad.
Protesters changed, "Death to the dictator" and "Not Gaza, not Lebanon, my life for Iran," a reference to anger in some circles that the government is focusing on the wider region rather than improving conditions at home.
"I strongly support and stand in solidarity with the Iranian people who are bravely taking to the streets to speak out against their repressive, brutal government in Tehran," Cruz said. "These protests reveal to the world that the Iranian regime would rather export and finance terror beyond its borders--especially to its terrorist proxies in Syria, Gaza, Iraq, Lebanon, and Yemen--than work to meet the basic needs of its own citizens."
"The Iranian people want freedom and an end to the ayatollahs' reign of terror. The sanctions relief provided under the disastrous Obama nuclear deal has done nothing but line the pockets of Iran’s mullahs whose sole desire is to spread their hateful ideology and do everything they can to murder Americans, Israelis, and our allies across Europe and the Middle East.
"I urge the Trump Administration to do everything possible to support these courageous protestors, and I call upon freedom-loving nations everywhere to rally behind and publicly express their support for the Iranian people."
Meanwhile, US President Donald Trump tweeted, "Many reports of peaceful protests by Iranian citizens fed up with regime’s corruption & its squandering of the nation’s wealth to fund terrorism abroad. Iranian govt should respect their people’s rights, including rights to express themselves. The world is watching! #IranProtests"
Many reports of peaceful protests by Iranian citizens fed up with regime’s corruption & its squandering of the nation’s wealth to fund terrorism abroad. Iranian govt should respect their people’s rights, including right to express themselves. The world is watching! #IranProtests
— Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) December 30, 2017
Israel's Public Security Minister Gilad Erdan (Likud) tweeted, "Iran is wasting billions of dollars funding Hezbollah, Hamas, the Assad regime and terrorism throughout the world, rather than investing in the Iranian people. It’s no wonder that many Iranians are bravely standing up and speaking out against the Iranian leadership."
On Friday, Israeli Prime Minister Binyamin Netanyahu publicized a video supporting the struggle of the Iranian people and asking the world to pray for Christians living under Iranian rule.
