The human rights organization Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA) announced on the morning of January 14 that the death toll from nationwide protests in Iran has exceeded 2,500 people.
Points of attention
- Iran is facing a devastating situation with the death toll from nationwide protests exceeding 2,500 people.
- The majority of the deceased are protesters, highlighting the intense conflict between the demonstrators and the Iranian government.
More than 2,500 people have died in Iran during large-scale protests
According to human rights activists, at least 2,571 people have died as a result of the protests, of whom 2,403 were protesters and 147 were individuals associated with the Iranian government.
In addition, HRANA reported the deaths of 12 children, as well as 9 civilians who, according to activists, did not participate in the protests.
In addition, more than 18,100 people were detained during the riots, HRANA added.
The new figures are shocking, especially considering that the death toll in two weeks is four times higher than the several months of protests in 2022 that sparked the death of Mahsa Amini, said Skylar Thompson of HRANA. She warned that the death toll will rise.
We are shocked, but we still believe that these numbers are underestimates.
The human rights activists' figures far exceed the number of deaths during any other protests or unrest in Iran in recent decades and resemble the chaos during the events of the Islamic Revolution in 1979.
It is noted that Iranian state television officially confirmed the death for the first time, quoting an official who said that the country has "many martyrs."
In their first phone call since the connection was cut, witnesses in Iran described heightened security in central Tehran, burned government buildings, smashed ATMs and few passersby. At the same time, people were worried about what would happen next, including the possibility of an attack by the United States.
Text messaging is still down, witnesses said, and internet users in Iran can only access government-approved websites locally, but not overseas. Police were stationed at major intersections, and plainclothes security personnel were visible in public areas. The police, wearing bulletproof vests and helmets, were armed with batons, shields, rifles and tear gas grenade launchers, witnesses said.
They also reported that several banks and government offices were burned during the riots. Shops were open on Tuesday, but there were few people in the capital.
Iranian state television read a statement saying that morgue services were free, signaling that some facilities may have charged high fees for the return of bodies during the crackdown, the report said.
In addition, security officials were apparently searching for Starlink satellite internet terminals. Residents of northern Tehran reported that authorities were conducting searches in apartment buildings with satellite dishes. On Wednesday, activists said that Starlink was offering free services in Iran.
