TEHRAN, July 20, 2026 (BSS/AFP) - Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian on 
Monday said his country was in a "full-scale war" with the United States and 
that Tehran should accept the repercussions of the conflict.

"The reality is that today the Islamic Republic of Iran is engaged in a full-
scale war," Pezeshkian said, adding that "we must be realistic and accept the 
natural consequences of this resistance," he said, according to a presidency 
statement.

"The most important battlefield today is the economy and the livelihoods of 
the people," said the Iranian president in a meeting in Tehran with judicial 
officials.

"If economic pressures cause social discontent to form and this discontent 
spreads, the enormous social capital that the people have created in support 
of the state may be damaged."

In June, inflation in Iran accelerated sharply due to the war, reaching peaks 
of nearly 90 percent year-on-year.

Figures for July are not yet available.

In late December, a protest movement initially sparked by the high cost of 
living rapidly transformed into widespread anti-government demonstrations 
that peaked on January 8 and 9.

Iranian authorities reported more than 3,000 deaths, attributing the violence 
to "terrorist acts" orchestrated by the United States and Israel.

Foreign-based NGOs, however, put the death toll much higher.