Graham calls for the end of the Iranian regime as Erfan Soltani awaits execution

Sen. Lindsey Graham, RS.C., is calling for the end of the Iranian regime amid ongoing protests and as the country holds its breath to see if a 26-year-old protester will be killed, something President Donald Trump has said could prompt US intervention.

“I read with great sadness and heartache about the pending execution of Erfan Soltani, a 26-year-old shopkeeper. He faces death at the hands of the ayatollah just for protesting in the street for a better life. His family is calling on the whole world to help their son,” Graham wrote in a post on X and an article about Soltani.

“I hope and pray that the killing does not continue and that this young man does not lose his life because he wants to live in freedom without fear,” added the Senator. “This regime must fall, and the Iranian people must have a better life.”

Graham said he believes that if the regime falls and the “deadly ayatollahs in charge of Iran” are gone, the impact on the region “could be incredibly positive.” He also warned, however, that if Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei remains in power, it would be “a big step back into darkness.”

LINDSEY GRAHAM IS CALLING US TO USE ‘ANY MEANS NECESSARY’ TO STOP PEOPLE FROM KILLING IRANIAN PEOPLE.

Soltani’s story has spread in recent days as the unrest continues in Iran. A 26-year-old suspect was arrested in Fardis and sentenced to death after a speedy trial, according to ABC News, citing Soltani’s second cousin, Somayeh.

“As an activist myself who has fought against this regime for many years, I felt it was my privilege – and my duty – to be Erfan’s voice outside the country, despite all the pressure and punishments the families face,” Somayeh, who is based in Germany, told ABC News.

Iranians began protesting in late December amid worsening economic conditions. Earlier this month, the regime began a nationwide internet shutdown, preventing protesters from communicating with or communicating with foreign countries amid international fears that protesters would be met with violence and death.

In this photo taken by AP video outside Iran, a masked protester holds a picture of Iran’s Crown Prince Reza Pahlavi during a protest in Tehran, Iran, Friday, Jan. 9, 2026. (UGC through AP)

IRAN’S SUPREME PRAYER LEADER WHO BOUNCED PROTESTERS ‘TRUMP’S SOLDIERS’ WANTS KILLED AMID CONTROVERSY

On January 2, a few days after the protests broke out, Trump said the US was “locked and loaded” and was ready to take action if the government used violence against the protesters. One day after the threat, the US kidnapped Venezuelan dictator Nicolás Maduro, adding weight to Trump’s words, although no known action has been taken.

Trump said on Wednesday that the administration had been told on “good authority” that the killings in Iran had stopped.

“We’ve been told that the killing of people in Iran is stopping, and it’s stopped and it’s stopped, and there’s no plan to kill or be killed,” Trump said in the Oval Office. “So, I’ve been told that on good authority. We’ll find out about it.”

Protesters burn effigies of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei during a rally in Solidarity with the Iranian Revolution in Whitehall in central London on Jan. 11, 2026. (Carlos Jasso/AFP via Getty Images)

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On Friday, he appeared to challenge the notion that the regime had stopped using violence when he posted on the Truth Social website that Iran had canceled the planned execution of 800.

“I greatly respect the fact that all of the planned executions, which were to take place yesterday (more than 800), have been canceled by the Iranian leadership,” Trump wrote on Truth Social.

Soltani’s fate remains unclear, as does the prospect of US intervention in Iran.