At least 12,000 reportedly killed in Iran unrest, challenging official count
At least 12,000 people may have been killed during Iran’s recent unrest, according to Iran International, a figure that sharply contradicts official accounts and, if confirmed, would mark the deadliest episode of state violence in the country’s modern history.
In a statement published by its editorial board, the opposition-linked outlet said the scale of the killings had been concealed by a coordinated information blackout, including internet shutdowns, media restrictions and intimidation of journalists and witnesses.
Iran International said it delayed publishing casualty estimates until it had assessed what it described as converging and credible evidence, citing the risks of releasing incomplete figures in a country where access to information is tightly controlled.
The outlet said its assessment was based on a multi-stage review of information from sources it described as close to Iran’s Supreme National Security Council and presidential office, as well as accounts from within the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, medical staff, eyewitnesses and families of those killed.
According to its findings, the deaths occurred largely over two nights, on January 8 and 9, during a nationwide crackdown on protests, and involved coordinated use of lethal force rather than isolated or spontaneous clashes.
Iran International said those killed were mainly shot by members of the Revolutionary Guard and the Basij militia, and that many of the victims were under the age of 30.
The outlet alleged that the operation was ordered at the highest levels of the state, claiming the decision to use live fire was taken with the knowledge and approval of Iran’s top political and security leadership. These claims could not be independently verified.
Iranian authorities have rejected such accounts, putting the death toll at around 2,000. An official told Reuters that those killed were victims of violence by “terrorists” and vandals, not the security forces.
Human rights groups and international media have reported confirmed deaths in the hundreds, while stressing that independent verification remains extremely difficult because of severe restrictions on reporting and communications inside Iran.
The stark disparity between official figures and the claims by Iran International underscores the challenge of assessing the true human cost of Iran’s unrest, as information controls and competing narratives continue to obscure events on the ground.
This story is written and edited by the Global South World team, you can contact us here.
