Iran's regime reportedly slaughtered thousands of its own people in January to crush a freedom uprising.
Trump promised the survivors help was coming.
Now he's revealed what happened to the guns the US sent – and he's furious.
Trump Tells Fox News the Kurds Kept the Guns
President Trump confirmed over Easter weekend that the United States sent firearms to Iranian protesters earlier this year, intending to help them fight back against the regime that was killing them in the streets.
He made the disclosure in a phone interview with Fox News chief foreign correspondent Trey Yingst on Sunday.
"We sent them a lot of guns," Trump told Yingst. "We sent them through the Kurds. And I think the Kurds kept them."
He repeated the account Monday morning while speaking to reporters outside the White House.
"We sent some guns," Trump said. "They were supposed to go to the people so they could fight back against these thugs. You know what happened? The people that we sent them to kept them."
"I am very upset with a certain group of people and they're gonna pay a big price for that."
US-Israel backed Iran Protesters Were Slaughtered After the Weapons Never Arrived
The protests that triggered the operation began in late December 2025, sparked by Iran's economic collapse – soaring inflation, a currency in freefall, and widespread food shortages tied to years of international sanctions.
By early January, the uprising had spread across the country.
The regime's response was to open fire.
Iranian authorities put the official death toll at 3,117, while human rights organizations and independent monitors have reported numbers several times higher.
Authorities imposed a near-total internet blackout on January 8th, making it nearly impossible to verify what was happening inside the country.
Trump, watching the crackdown unfold, vowed publicly that the protesters would receive help.
The gun operation was part of that effort.
Kurdish Groups Deny Receiving US Weapons Meant for Iran
Several Iranian Kurdish opposition groups have publicly denied receiving or keeping any US weapons.
Mohammed Nazif Qaderi, a senior official from the Kurdistan Democratic Party of Iran, told Kurdish broadcaster Rudaw the claims were "baseless."
"The weapons we have are from 47 years ago, and we obtained them on the Islamic Republic's battlefield, and we bought some from the market," Qaderi said.
Officials from the Komala Party of Iranian Kurdistan and the Kurdistan National Army also denied Trump's account.
The White House, when reached for comment, pointed reporters to Trump's own remarks at the Monday morning press event.
Trump Warns the Kurds They Will Pay a Price as the Iran War Drags On
Trump's disclosure came during the same interview in which he told Yingst that Iranian negotiators were "close" to a deal – meaning he confirmed the gun operation at the precise moment he was publicly pressing for peace talks.
The US-Israel war on Iran, launched February 28th, is now in its sixth week with the Strait of Hormuz still closed to oil traffic and gas prices surging past $4 a gallon nationwide.
As for the Kurds who he believes kept the weapons, Trump left no ambiguity.
"They're gonna pay a big price for that," he said.
Sources:
- Ben Whedon, "Trump confirms U.S. sent guns to Iranian people, but says intermediary kept them," Just The News, April 6, 2026.
- "Trump Reveals Botched Attempt to Send Guns to the Iranian People," The Western Journal, April 6, 2026.
- "Kurdish groups reject Trump claim they kept U.S. guns meant for Iran protesters," Newsweek, April 6, 2026.
- "Trump warns of 'critical period' in Iran war," CBS News, April 7, 2026.
- "Iran war latest: Trump vows to 'blow everything up,'" Fox News Live Updates, April 5–6, 2026.
- "Trump deadline for Iran ticks closer as Islamic republic rejects temporary ceasefire," Fox News, April 7, 2026.
