President Donald Trump on Monday told reporters that he thought the Iranian people should rise up against the government in the country if a ceasefire were declared, but understood that it was too dangerous for them to do so.

“Well they should do it but, again, the consequences are great,” Trump said during a White House news conference. “I mean, they were told, ‘If you protest, you will be shot immediately.'”

Trump, who has threatened to bomb Iran’s power plants and bridges, also said he believed Iranians “would be willing to suffer that in order to have freedom.”

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(Reporting by Nandita Bose; Writing by Daphne Psaledakis and Doina Chiacu;Editing by David Ljunggren)