The capture of Nicolás Maduro will force officials in Tehran to consider a broader range of risks as Trump threatens to intervene.

Demonstrations have reached over 170 locations in 25 of Iran’s 31 provinces, the U.S.-based Human Rights Activists News Agency reported Sunday. The death toll had reached at least 15 killed, it added, with more than 580 arrests. The group, which relies on an activist network inside of Iran for its reporting, has been accurate in past unrest.

Tehran is still reeling from a 12-day war launched by Israel in June that saw the United States bomb nuclear sites in Iran. Economic pressure, which has intensified since September when the United Nations reimposed sanctions on the country over its atomic program, has put Iran’s rial currency into a free fall, now trading at some 1.4 million to $1.

Officials said that leaders were in survival mode amid anti-government protests and the prospect of again coming into the cross hairs of Israel and the United States.

At least 16 people have been killed during a week of unrest in Iran, rights groups said on Sunday, as protests over soaring inflation spread across the country, sparking violent clashes between demonstrators and security forces.

Venezuela President Nicolás Maduro's capture deals devastating blow to Iran's Western Hemisphere interests, experts say, weakening Tehran's anti-American alliance in South America.

Galloping inflation and a currency crisis have provoked demonstrations across the country. Protests fueled by deepening economic hardship have swept Iran for more than a week, as soaring inflation has driven frustrated traders and university students into the streets of major cities, including the capital, Tehran.

Experts say US military action in Caracas ‘gives momentum’ for conflict with Tehran and deals another blow to diplomacy.