Trump thanks Iran for not following through on executions of political prisoners

WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump took the unusual step on Friday of thanking the Iranian government for not following through on executions of what he said was meant to be hundreds of political prisoners.

“Iran canceled the hanging of over 800 people,” Trump told reporters while leaving the White House to spend the weekend at his Mar-a-Lago estate in Palm Beach, Florida.

He added “and I greatly respect the fact that they canceled.”

The Republican president also suggested on his social media site that more than 800 people had been set to be executed in Iran, but he said they now won’t be.

“Thank you!” Trump posted.

Those sentiments come after Trump spent days suggesting that the U.S. might strike Iran militarily if its government triggered mass killings during widespread protests that swept that country but now have quieted.

The death toll from those demonstrations continues to rise, activists say. Still, Trump seemed to hint that the prospects for U.S. military action were fading since Iran had held off on the executions.

The president’s rosy assessment did not appear to match the more complicated situation in Iran. Still, his pronouncements seemed to be more evidence of him backing away from his early comments that suggested a U.S. attack on that country might be imminent.

Trump had previously posted of Iran and the protesters there, “Help is on the way.” But asked if that was still the case on Friday, he replied: “Well, we’re going to see.”

Questioned specifically if Arab and Israeli officials might have convinced him to back down on seeming suggestions that he would strike Iran, Trump said, “Nobody convinced me. I convinced myself.”

“You had yesterday scheduled over 800 hangings. They didn’t hang anyone,” he said. “They canceled the hangings. That had a big impact.”

Trump did not clarify who he was speaking to in Iran to confirm the state of planned executions. That's important since, even as he was offering Iran kind words, harsh repression that has left several thousand people dead appeared to have successfully stifled demonstrations across the country.

Protests that began Dec. 28 over an ailing economy and morphed into protests directly challenging the country’s theocracy seem to have stopped. There have been no signs of protests for days in Tehran, where shopping and street life have returned to outward normality, though a week-old internet blackout continued.

Authorities have not reported any unrest elsewhere in the country.

Still, the U.S.-based Human Rights Activists News Agency on Friday put the death toll from demonstrations at 2,797, and that number continues to rise.

Meanwhile, Iran’s exiled Crown Prince Reza Pahlavi urged the U.S. to make good on its perhaps now dwindling pledge to intervene, calling Trump “a man of his word.”

FILE - Iranian senior cleric Ahmad Khatami delivers his sermon during Friday prayer ceremony in Tehran, Iran, Friday, Jan. 5, 2018. (AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi, File)

A man hands out posters of the Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei during a funeral ceremony for a group of security forces, who were killed during anti-government protests, in Tehran, Iran, Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2026. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)

A man hands out posters of the Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei during a funeral ceremony for a group of security forces, who were killed during anti-government protests, in Tehran, Iran, Wednesday, Jan. 14, 2026. (AP Photo/Vahid Salemi)

President Donald Trump boards Air Force One, Friday, Jan. 16, 2026, at Joint Base Andrews, Md. (AP Photo/Julia Demaree Nikhinson)

NEW YORK (AP) — Atlanta outfielder Jurickson Profar faces a 162-game suspension by Major League Baseball for a possible second failed test for a performance-enhancing drug, a person familiar with the issue told The Associated Press on Tuesday.

The person spoke on condition of anonymity because the process, first reported by ESPN, was ongoing.

Profar intends to ask the players' association to file a grievance to appeal any discipline to baseball’s independent arbitrator, Martin F. Scheinman, a second person familiar with the process said, also on condition of anonymity, because no announcement had been made.

Because this would be Profar's second infraction, an appeal would take place after a suspension was announced.

An All-Star in 2024, Profar was suspended for 80 games last March 31 following a positive test for Chorionic Gonadotrophin (hCG), a hormone that helps production of testosterone. He issued a statement then saying: "I would never willingly take a banned substance, but I take full responsibility and accept MLB’s decision.”

His agent, Dan Lozano, did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Profar homered in his return from suspension on July 2 and finished with a .245 average, 14 homers, 43 RBIs and a .787 OPS in 80 games. He batted .280 in 2024, when he set career highs with 24 homers, 85 RBIs and an .839 OPS.

Profar said at the start of spring training that he had sports hernia surgery in November, requiring a six-week recovery time. He has appeared in four spring training games this year, going 3 for 10 with three RBIs.

A native of Curaçao, Profar had been set to play for the Netherlands in the World Baseball Classic.

Under the suspension, he would be ineligible for the postseason.

Profar would lose his $15 million salary for this year as part of a $42 million, three-year contract through 2027. He lost half his $12 million salary in 2025 due to the initial suspension.

He would be the seventh player suspended 162 games for a second PED infraction after New York Mets pitcher Jenrry Mejia (July 2015), Cleveland outfielder Marlon Byrd (June 2016), free agent catcher Cody Stanley (July 2016), Houston pitcher Francis Martes (February 2020), Mets second baseman Robinson Canó (November 2020) and Milwaukee pitcher J.C. Mejia (September 2023).

Mejia received a lifetime ban in February 2016 after a third positive test, the only player to be given a permanent ban since drug testing with penalties started in 2004.

Four players have been suspended previously this year for positive tests, including free agent outfielder Max Kepler for 80 games under the major league program following a positive test for Epitrenbolone.

Following the offseason signing of left fielder Mike Yastrzemski to a $23 million, two-year deal, Profar had been targeted to be the Braves’ primary designated hitter.

When catcher Sean Murphy returns from a hip injury, perhaps in May, 2025 NL Rookie of the Year Drake Baldwin could fill in at DH when not behind the plate.

With Yastrzemski, Michael Harris and Ronald Acuña Jr. in the outfield, Eli White could be a DH option. The Braves also are without projected starting shortstop Ha-seong Kim due to a finger injury. Mauricio Dubon, expected to serve a utility role, is scheduled to open the season as the starting shortstop.

The loss of Profar could create an opportunity for Dominic Smith, who signed a minor league deal on Feb. 17.

AP Sports Writer Charles Odum contributed to this report.

AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb

Atlanta Braves Drake Baldwin is greeted by Jurickson Profar after hitting a solo home run in the third inning of a spring training baseball game against the Minnesota Twins in North Port, Fla., Sunday, Feb. 22, 2026. (AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)