Iran protests… Rouhani and Khamenei declare victory and accuse countries in the region of stoking demonstrations

TEHRAN (Reuters) - Iran declared on Wednesday the sixth day of protests in Iranian cities that it had defeated "enemy plans" after days of demonstrations marred by violence that killed fuel prices.

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said that "the Iranian people have passed another historical test" and dispelled enemy plans in various incidents, this time also succeeded in thwarting enemy plans and thwarting the plots of those who imposed maximum sanctions in the past two years.

"Few people who took to the streets in recent days were rioters," Rouhani said on Wednesday.

"They were more organized, coordinated and also armed, working in full accordance with a program prepared by reactionary forces in the region, the Zionists and the Americans," he said.

Khamenei announces the defeat of the enemy
On Tuesday evening, Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei announced in a televised speech that Iran had "retreated on the enemy in the fields of military, political and security war."

"We defeated the enemy during the security events of recent days," Khamenei said, noting that the unrest in the country was not caused by a popular movement.

The United States, which accuses Iran of being behind the crises in the Middle East and imposed severe economic sanctions, expressed support for the demonstrators.

Demonstrations in Iran erupted on Friday evening hours after announcing a reform of fuel subsidies, an amendment aimed at helping those most in need, but accompanied by a dramatic rise in gasoline prices, amid a severe economic crisis.

The protests spread quickly to 40 other cities and regions, including Tehran, burning petrol stations and attacking police stations, shopping malls, mosques and public buildings.

Just speculation
The authorities confirmed the deaths of five people, including four security forces and a civilian, while Amnesty International on Tuesday referred to reports of "at least 106 demonstrators killed", and the United Nations expressed fear that "dozens" of people may be killed.

But a spokesman for Iran's UN mission, Ali Reza Mir-Yousafi, said in a tweet on Wednesday that any figures regarding the casualties of the country's bloody protests over rising gasoline prices were "speculation and not credible" unless Tehran confirmed it.

"The baseless allegations and the false figures by biased Western entities do not undermine the government's determination to make wise economic decisions while respecting human rights, including the right to freedom of public protest in a peaceful environment."

Diplomatic protest
The Iranian Foreign Ministry summoned the Swiss ambassador in Tehran on Wednesday over remarks by US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo in which he voiced support for protesters protesting in Iran after gasoline prices rose, the official IRNA news agency reported.

Iran told the ambassador, who represents US interests in the Islamic Republic because of the lack of formal diplomatic relations between Tehran and Washington, that US official statements interfered in the internal Iranian affairs.