Iran vows fast trials for detained protesters despite Trump threat

Iran on Wednesday vowed fast-track trials for people arrested over a massive wave of protests, after US President Donald Trump threatened “very strong action” if the Islamic republic goes ahead with hangings.

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In Tehran, authorities held a funeral ceremony for over 100 members of the security forces and other “martyrs” killed in the demonstrations, which authorities have branded as “riots” while accusing protesters of waging “acts of terror.”

The ceremony attended by thousands of people waving flags of the Islamic republic began with prayers being read out for the dead outside Tehran University, according to the images.

The security force crackdown on the demonstrations has killed at least 2,586, the US-based Human Rights Activists News Agency reported.

Demonstrators have defied the authorities’ zero-tolerance for dissent by turning out in protests all around the country, even as authorities insist they have regained the upper hand.

Iran's judiciary chief Gholamhossein Mohseni Ejei said on a visit to a prison holding protest detainees that “if a person burned someone, beheaded someone and set them on fire then we must do our work quickly”, in comments broadcast by state television.