Tehran: Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian warned the US on Sunday that any attack on the country's supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, would mean a declaration of war.

"An attack on the great leader of our country is tantamount to a full-scale war with the Iranian nation," Pezeshkian said in a post on X in an apparent response to US President Donald Trump saying it was time to look for a new leader in Iran.

Meanwhile, some internet access has been restored in Iran 238 hours after authorities imposed a shutdown on January 8 over mounting protests, a monitor said on Sunday, noting ordinary connectivity remained "disrupted".

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"Traffic data indicate a significant return to some online services, including Google, suggesting that heavily filtered access has been enabled, corroborating user reports of partial restoration," Netblocks said in a social media post.

The Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA) said on Sunday that despite the continued widespread internet blackout and intense security pressure, confirmed figures show that the total number of verified deaths has reached 3,308, with another 4,382 cases still under review. So far, 2,107 people with severe injuries have been identified, and the arrest of at least 24,266 individuals has been confirmed.

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On this day, the Leader of the Islamic Republic for the first time acknowledged that "several thousand people" had been killed during the protests. The release of new images from forensic medicine centres, an increase in mass arrests, and the intensification of international reactions were among today's most significant developments, as per HRANA.

The nationwide internet shutdown, which began on January 8, passed the 200-hour mark on the twenty-first day and continues. Although very limited and brief increases in connectivity were reported at certain points in recent hours, overall access to the global internet remains at only a few per cent of normal levels.

Trump has repeatedly threatened military action against Iran. A few days ago, Khamenei said Iran considers Trump the main culprit for the killings and destruction in the riots.

He said some agents behind the unrest included individuals who were identified, trained and largely recruited by American and Israeli agencies.