Iran’s supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on Wednesday praised the country’s people for foiling a “very dangerous” plot, after violence erupted during protests this month against a fuel price hike. “The people foiled a deep, vast and very dangerous conspiracy on which a lot of money was spent for destruction, viciousness and the killing of people,” Khamenei said, quoted by state television. On Twitter, Khamenei expressed his “heartfelt gratitude and appreciation” to the Iranian nation in a post alongside pictures of a massive pro-government rally held in Tehran on Monday.