Human Rights Watch, in a new report, announced growing evidence of “mass killings” carried out by the Iranian regime’s security forces across Iran and stated that the use of live ammunition against unarmed protesters was deliberate and carried out as part of a state policy.
The report, published on Friday, January 16, stresses that the Iranian regime’s security forces, following the escalation of nationwide protests since January 8, have coordinated widespread killings of protesters, and it is believed that thousands of protesters and bystanders have been killed. According to the organization, existing evidence shows that many victims were killed or seriously injured by gunshots to the head and upper body.
Human Rights Watch stated that severe communication restrictions and a complete internet shutdown have concealed the true scale of these killings. Nevertheless, according to the report, some Iranian officials themselves have acknowledged that the death toll has reached the thousands.
‘Rivers of Blood’; the Horrific Reality of the Massacre of Protesters in Iran #IranProt #FreeIran2026ests #IranRevolutionhttps://t.co/brgKCUgUMm
— Iran Focus (@Iran_Focus) January 15, 2026
Lama Fakih, deputy Middle East director at Human Rights Watch, said in response to these findings:
“The mass killings by Iran’s security forces since January 8 are unprecedented in the country’s history and once again show that rulers who massacre their own people will continue committing crimes as long as they are not held accountable.”
The necessity of an international response to the crime
According to the published report, Human Rights Watch interviewed 21 people between January 12 and January 14, including eyewitnesses, relatives of victims, journalists, human rights defenders, and medical personnel. These individuals provided the organization with images, audio messages, and accounts of events. Additionally, 51 verified photos and videos were reviewed, and victims’ injuries were assessed by independent forensic medical experts affiliated with the International Rehabilitation Council for Torture Victims.
The report adds that despite widespread communication shutdowns, evidence of protesters being killed has emerged in provinces such as Tehran, Alborz, Kermanshah, Razavi Khorasan, Gilan, Kohgiluyeh and Boyer-Ahmad, Markazi, and Mazandaran. One eyewitness in Kermanshah said in an audio message:
“They are shooting here; tear gas is everywhere. I am stuck in the street on my way back from work. All the roads are blocked, and security forces are firing.”
Human Rights Watch also referred to videos from Tehran showing numerous body bags and piled-up corpses in and around the Kahrizak forensic medicine center. According to the organization, in just a few videos from the same location, at least 400 bodies could be counted, although the actual number is estimated to be higher due to bodies being stacked.
Bags piled with human bodies!
The report goes on to say that state-affiliated media have reported the deaths of at least 121 security force members, a figure that has not been independently verified. However, Human Rights Watch stated it reviewed reports indicating that officials in some cases pressured victims’ families to falsely identify their loved ones as members of the Basij militia in order to receive their bodies.
Citing United Nations principles on the use of force, the organization emphasized that the widespread, coordinated, and lethal use of firearms against unarmed protesters shows that authorities deliberately used lethal force as a state policy.
