Iran accuses US govt of interference

Iran on Wednesday angrily accused the United States at the United Nations of meddling in its domestic affairs after President Donald Trump backed anti-government protests.

Iran's UN Ambassador Gholamali Khoshroo said in a letter that the US government "has stepped up its acts of intervention in a grotesque way in Iran's internal affairs under the pretext of providing support for sporadic protests, which in several instances were hijacked by infiltrators."

Khoshroo charged that the United States had violated international law and the principles of the UN charter, and urged countries to condemn Washington's statements.

"The president and vice president of the United States, in their numerous absurd tweets, incited Iranians to engage in disruptive acts," said Khoshroo in the letter to the Security Council and to UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres.

"The US Department of State went so far as admitting that the US government wants to encourage protestors in Iran to change their government, admitting that the US is engaged in interfering with the internal affairs of Iran through Facebook and Twitter," he added.

The letter was released after Trump pledged to help Iranians "take back" their government and the White House weighed sanctions against those involved in the crackdown against demonstrators.

"Such respect for the people of Iran as they try to take back their corrupt government. You will see great support  from the United States at the appropriate time!" Trump tweeted.

US Ambassador Nikki Haley said Tuesday she would be seeking an emergency UN Security Council meeting to discuss the violence that has left 21 dead.

But diplomats said Wednesday that no such meeting was scheduled for the time being.

Russia and China are among the countries that are expected to oppose Security Council action on Iran, diplomats said.

UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres earlier deplored the loss of life during the anti-government protests and said "further violence must be avoided."

Iran saw another day of large pro-regime rallies yesterday after authorities declared the end of deadly unrest and turned attention to addressing the economic concerns that fuelled protests.

A week after demonstrations broke out, there was a very heavy police presence on the streets of Tehran, AFP journalists said, and no reports of fresh protests overnight.

Limited activity on social media suggested unrest in provincial towns was also down.

Iranian state TV showed huge crowds marching in support of the government across 10 cities early yesterday, including Isfahan, Ardebil and Mashhad, where the protests first erupted a week ago.

"We are together behind the leader," chanted the crowds, in reference to supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

In a bid to address grievances that drove the initial unrest, Iranian authorities were weighing options including blocking unpopular measures in President Hassan Rouhani's recent budget.

"The people's main demand now is for the government and officials to deal with the economic problems," Ali Akbar Velayati, an advisor to Khamenei, told the semi-official ISNA news agency.

The head of the army, General Abdolrahim Mousavin, thanked security forces for "putting out the fire of sedition".

A total of 21 people died and hundreds were arrested in five days of unrest that began on December  28 as protests over economic woes and quickly turned against the regime as a whole, with attacks on government buildings and police stations.