(TNND) — President Donald Trump said Thursday that the U.S. has a “big force” heading toward Iran and that officials are “watching them very closely,” as he continues to threaten military action over the government’s deadly crackdown on protests.

“We have a big flotilla going in that direction, and we’ll see what happens. It's a big force," Trump told reporters on Air Force One as he returned from the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.

His comments appeared to refer to the Pentagon's order to move additional military assets to the Middle East, including the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln and its accompanying warships from the South China Sea.

Trump appeared to backdown last week when he claimed a "credible source" told him killings tied to Iran's protesters have stopped and thanked Iran's leadership for canceling 800 scheduled hangings.

“We’ll find out,” the president said in the Oval Office, adding that time would tell whether Iran’s actions match its words.

Iran's top prosecutor quickly shot back at Trump over the hangings, calling it "completely false."

“This claim is completely false; no such number exists, nor has the judiciary made any such decision,” Mohammad Movahedi strongly denied, according to the judiciary’s Mizan News Agency.

His remarks suggested Iran’s Foreign Ministry, led by Abbas Araghchi, may have offered that figure to Trump. Araghchi has had a direct line to U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff and conducted multiple rounds of negotiations over Iran’s nuclear program with him.

“We have a separation of powers, the responsibilities of each institution are clearly defined, and we do not, under any circumstances, take instructions from foreign powers,” Movahedi said.

The latest death toll was given by the U.S.-based Human Rights Activists News Agency, which reported that more than 4,700 of the dead were demonstrators. It added that more than 27,600 people had been detained in a widening arrest campaign.

However, independent verification has been difficult amid a sweeping internet blackout imposed by Iranian authorities.

Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei accused Trump over the weekend of escalating already high tensions.

“In this revolt the U.S. president intervened directly,” Khamenei said Saturday. In a post on X, the Iranian leader wrote that the United States president was “guilty due to the casualties, damages and slander he inflicted upon the Iranian nation.”

Demonstrations in Iran began on Dec. 28 amid a worsening economic crisis and widespread dissatisfaction with the government.

As protests gained momentum, Trump said on Jan. 2 that the U.S. was "locked and loaded" if Iran shoots or "violently kills peaceful protesters." He then declared that all meetings with Iranian officials were canceled and urged demonstrators to continue to protest.

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Editor's note: The Associated Press contributed to this article.