Protests in Iran are intensifying due to the country's struggling economy, putting pressure on its theocracy as it has shut down the internet and telephone networks.

Iran's anti-government protests enter day 13 with reported death toll of 51, including 9 children, as demonstrations spread nationwide against the regime.

Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei strikes a defiant tone against the U.S. after a night of massive anti-government protests.

Iranians took to the streets in new protests Friday to press the biggest movement against the Islamic republic in more than three years, as authorities sustained an internet blackout as part of a crackdown that has left dozens dead.

The Iranian army said on Saturday it would safeguard strategic infrastructure and public property and urged Iranians to thwart "the enemy's plots", as the clerical establishment steps up efforts to quell the country's biggest protests in years.

BBC News Persian profiles the former crown prince who is once again seeking a role in shaping his country's future.

Tens of thousands of Iranians poured into the streets on Friday night in a second night of mass, nationwide antigovernment protests despite a total internet blackout and threats of a severe crackdown from the senior Iranian leadership.

Two ships from Iran — the destroyer Jamaran and the warship Mahdavai — have arrived at Cape Town, as has the Russian destroyer Stoikiy, the South African National Defence Force said in a statement late Friday.

Protesters were "ruining their own streets" to please President Donald Trump, who has threatened intervention, Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said Friday.

Iranians in over 100 cities and towns across the country are protesting on the streets, shouting slogans against the regime and demanding greater rights.