Following nationwide protests against Iran’s regime, which began on December 28, 2025, the Iranian regime’s security forces carried out a horrific crime. Numerous reports indicate that the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), its Quds Force, and fighters from Hashd al-Shaabi, an Iran-backed Iraqi militia, were the main perpetrators of this crime. Field reports, testimonies from doctors, and human rights organizations point to the deliberate killing of thousands of protesters and young people through the lethal use of force, the establishment of summary field courts, mass arrests, assaults on medical centers, and a nationwide internet shutdown.
How Did the Rasht Bazaar Massacre Happen?
Images released from the city of Rasht depict one of the most horrifying scenes of the nationwide crackdown in January 2026; scenes in which piles of abandoned shoes scattered on the ground have become a silent symbol of an organized massacre.
An Iranian Holocaust in Rasht
During the protests, the Iranian regime’s security forces set fire to Rasht’s crowded and historic bazaar, which was filled with protesting civilians. Flames and thick smoke trapped people inside the bazaar and blocked the exits. Under these conditions, those who tried to escape to save their lives were directly shot at. Many victims either died from suffocation and burns or were killed by gunfire while attempting to flee.
Videos released from the scene show the charred remains of the bazaar: blackened walls, partially burned shops, and ground covered in ash. These images are clear evidence of a deliberate attack on unarmed civilians and a blatant example of a crime against humanity.
Reactions to this tragedy have spread beyond Iran’s borders. Suren Edgar, vice president of the Australian-Iranian Community Alliance, wrote on X:
“These shoes in Rasht are not art. They belonged to people trapped after regime forces set the historic bazaar on fire and shot those trying to escape.”
Eyewitness Accounts of the Crime Against Humanity in Rasht
Eyewitness accounts reveal even more shocking dimensions of the massacre. One witness who was in Rasht on Thursday and Friday, January 8 and 9, 2026, said that during the bazaar fire, repressive forces shot at people who came out of shops with their “hands raised” to escape smoke and suffocation and who were “surrendering.” This witness, who has recently left the country, estimated based on his observations that over those two nights, “two to three thousand people” were killed across different parts of Rasht, with many others wounded, disappeared, or arrested. He described the scenes as follows:
“The bazaar turned into a Holocaust. It reminded one of gas chambers. People either died in the smoke and fire or were forced to come out and face gunfire.”
Another eyewitness said:”On Thursday, January 8, my friend and I headed toward the municipality building to join the protest gatherings. We were surprised by the sheer number of people moving toward the bazaar. We reached a street that led to the bazaar and started chanting slogans. At first, they tried to disperse the crowd with tear gas. Young protesters threw the canisters back at the agents using gloves. But suddenly, special forces began direct and continuous fire with shotguns and Kalashnikov rifles.”
He continued:”We got trapped in a dead-end alley that opened onto Takhti Street, and the fire advanced to the mouth of the alley. From inside, we shouted to the agents that there were women and children here and that they should call the fire department, but they did not care at all.”
The witness added:”My friend, a few others, and I held a carpet over our heads and came out of the alley. Several agents on Takhti Street pointed in a direction and told us to go. One of them was shouting, ‘What happened, did you think the regime had fallen?’ We had not gone even 50 meters away when they shot us from behind. Seven pellets hit my body.”
Another witness said:”Some protesters had made shields out of pieces of metal to go help the wounded. They were moving at the front of the crowd. At the same time, the repressive forces set the bazaar on fire.”
He continued:”A large crowd had taken shelter inside the bazaar, but as the fire intensified they were forced to come out. In a matter of seconds, the sound of gunfire erupted in the most horrifying way. Many people were shot before my eyes and massacred right in front of me.”
The witness said:”After the shooting started, I saw a girl who had been hit by pellets in the forehead and a boy whose leg was bleeding heavily. We helped them and took them to a house’s parking area. There were about two other severely bleeding wounded people sheltering there.”
He added:”The constant sound of gunfire came from outside. The agents fired so much tear gas into the parking area that it became impossible to breathe. When we were forced to come out, we faced a critical situation. The street was full of wounded people and bodies, and it was impossible to tell who was alive and who was dead.”
The deliberate burning of a protest gathering site, direct shooting at unarmed civilians, and obstruction of medical aid all demonstrate widespread and systematic human rights violations and constitute a clear crime against humanity.
The images of abandoned shoes, the burned remains of the bazaar, and the eyewitness testimonies are documents that record this catastrophe for history.
