Iran warns Washington it will retaliate if the US launches an attack

As nationwide protests in Iran entered their third week, Tehran has warned that it will strike back if the United States attacks.

US President Donald Trump has repeatedly threatened to intervene to protect demonstrators amid a deadly crackdown by security forces.

Iran's parliament speaker, Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf, warned that Israel along with US military and its shipping centres in the region would become legitimate targets.

He went on to directly threaten Israel, “the occupied territory” as he referred to it, and the US military, possibly with a pre-emptive strike.

The Iranian authorities accuse Washington and Israel of fomenting the current unrest with security officials saying they have stepped up efforts to deal with the “rioters”.

Demonstrators defied the government crackdown to flood streets in the capital and elsewhere across the country on Saturday night into Sunday.

Human rights groups says at least 116 people have died and over 2,600 others have been detained since the start of the protests.

But with limited information coming out of the country due to an ongoing internet blackout, the full picture remains unclear.

The demonstrations began in late December in response to soaring prices, before turning against the clerical rulers who have governed Iran since the 1979 Islamic Revolution.

It remains unclear just how serious Iran is about launching a strike, particularly after seeing its air defences destroyed during the 12-day war in June with Israel.

Any decision to go to war would rest with Iran's 86-year-old Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.