White House Reviews Sanctions, Strikes and Cyber Options as Iran Protest Crackdown Intensifies

WASHINGTON — President Donald Trump’s top national security advisers are scheduled to gather at the White House on Tuesday to present a range of responses to Iran’s escalating suppression of nationwide protests, according to U.S. officials familiar with the planning.

The session follows Trump’s warning last Friday that Tehran is “in big trouble” and approaching a red line. Senior aides now must recommend whether to rely on additional economic pressure, launch limited military action or combine both approaches in an effort to deter further violence against demonstrators.

Economic pressure under review

One U.S. official said new sanctions aimed at senior Iranian figures, the energy sector and key banks are at the top of the written options. Trump has already threatened a 25 percent tariff on any nation that continues commercial activity with Iran while maintaining trade with the United States. A formal sanctions package would broaden that threat and could be issued by executive order within days if approved.

Military and cyber alternatives

The Pentagon has drafted several strike packages, ranging from large-scale attacks on critical military assets to pinpoint strikes against leaders of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps’ Basij forces and other internal security units blamed for protester deaths. Former defense officials say the commander in chief will also receive an assessment of whether such action could destabilize or potentially topple the regime.

Cyber options are included in the briefing materials. Plans call for offensive operations to disrupt command networks and propaganda outlets, alongside influence campaigns designed to amplify protest messaging online. The administration employed similar tactics during earlier confrontations with Iran’s nuclear program, according to open-source defense analyses.

Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt told reporters that diplomacy remains Trump’s “first option,” yet emphasized that all tools, including airstrikes, stay on the table. Separately, Senator Rand Paul has cautioned publicly that bombing Iran would not resolve the unrest, reflecting divisions within the Republican Party on the use of force.

Contacts with Tehran continue

Despite the heated rhetoric, indirect dialogue is underway. Leavitt confirmed that Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi has been communicating with U.S. Special Envoy Steve Witkoff. Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmail Baghaei said the channel “remains open” and that Tehran is reviewing proposals sent from Washington.

On Sunday night aboard Air Force One, Trump told traveling reporters that Iranian officials had reached out over the weekend to request negotiations and that a face-to-face meeting is being arranged, although he warned that U.S. action could precede the session if the crackdown worsens.

Regional force posture

Roughly 30,000 U.S. troops are currently deployed across the Middle East and Persian Gulf, including 2,500 service members in Iraq and 1,000 in Syria. Defense planners caution that any strike on Iran would likely trigger retaliatory missile or proxy attacks on those personnel, requiring additional air and missile defense assets.

Imagem: Internet

Six Navy vessels, among them three guided-missile destroyers, are positioned in regional waters and capable of intercepting ballistic threats. No U.S. aircraft carrier is present in either the Middle East or Europe; the USS Gerald Ford carrier strike group is operating in the Caribbean after being redirected to support separate missions related to Venezuela.

The U.S. Department of Defense (DoD) has quietly begun contingency planning to move fighter squadrons and ballistic-missile defense batteries closer to Iran should the president authorize strikes.

State Department engagement

Secretary of State Marco Rubio is expected at Tuesday’s White House meeting alongside Joint Chiefs Chairman Gen. Dan Caine. Over the weekend, Rubio held calls with his counterparts in France and Cyprus to coordinate positions on Iran and discussed the protests with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, according to U.S. and Israeli officials.

In recent days the State Department has posted Farsi-language messages on the social media platform X, warning Iranian authorities not to “play games” with the president. The department views the posts as part of a broader information campaign supporting demonstrators.

Outlook for decisions

Officials involved in the preparations say Trump will weigh the political risks of another major Middle East operation against his stated desire to avoid large troop deployments abroad. A former senior Pentagon official noted that any immediate strike package is likely to concentrate on security forces directly involved in quelling protests rather than conventional military targets.

The final decision could come quickly. Participants in Tuesday’s meeting are prepared to present sequenced options that begin with tightened sanctions and progress to limited kinetic and cyber actions, allowing the president to escalate or pause based on events in Iran’s streets.

Crédito da imagem: Julia Demaree Nikhinson/AP