Protests that erupted across Iran in late December 2025 entered a third week in mid-January, amid mounting reports of mass killings, widespread arrests, and a near-total communications blackout that has severely limited independent verification and journalistic coverage. Images and eyewitness accounts received by Zamaneh Media from inside Iran describe extensive casualties and a nationwide security crackdown, with authorities imposing sweeping restrictions on internet access and communications.
Evidence From Morgues and Forensic Centers
Some of the most disturbing material to emerge comes from the Kahrizak Forensic Medicine Center south of Tehran. Videos and photographs published by social media monitor Vahid Online on January 13 appear to show bodies laid out inside the facility on Saturday, January 11. Most bodies are seen in body bags or placed directly on the floor as families search for missing relatives.
Additional footage from the same location shows forensic staff directing families, separating male and female bodies, and transporting corpses by truck. Some bodies appear to have medical monitoring pads still attached, suggesting victims were treated in hospitals before dying. Several corpses are labeled as unidentified.
Vahid Online said the material was sent by an individual who traveled nearly 1,000 kilometers to obtain internet access. The source claimed that between 2,000 and 3,000 bodies were processed at the Kahrizak facility in a single day, including corpses stored in refrigerated truck containers. Zamaneh Media has not been able to independently verify these figures.
Bodies in the footage are identified by numerical tags, some reaching five-digit figures. While some observers have interpreted these numbers as indicating the death toll, Zamaneh Media cannot confirm this interpretation.
In a separate video published on Friday, January 10, from the same location, a screen inside what is described as the coroner’s office displays sequential photographs of the deceased for identification. A counter beneath the images begins at 250 and increases as the photographs change, matching the file numbers shown on screen and suggesting that at least that many bodies were present at the facility at the time.
Iranian State Broadcaster Acknowledges Fatal Shootings From Elevated Positions
Iran’s state broadcaster, IRIB (Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting), has aired an interview with a forensic expert who stated that many protesters killed during recent unrest died from gunshot wounds to the head. According to the expert, in numerous cases bullets entered from the top of the skull, with some projectiles remaining lodged in the head while others exited, indicating shots fired from elevated positions.
The remarks amount to an acknowledgment by Iranian authorities that protesters were targeted from above, including from rooftops and upper floors of buildings. This aligns with extensive photographic and video evidence circulated on social media showing snipers from the Islamic state units positioned on rooftops and firing at crowds below. Some footage also appears to show protesters being shot at with automatic weapons from elevated locations.
Security Measures and Reports of Martial Law
Residents in multiple cities described conditions resembling undeclared martial law. In Kurdish cities, parts of Khorasan province, Shahin Shahr, and Isfahan, authorities reportedly used loudspeakers to order residents indoors.
In Nishapur, Sabzevar, and Birjand, witnesses reported nighttime deployments of security forces, gunfire, and bodies left in the streets. In Isfahan, residents described snipers positioned on rooftops and heavy machine guns mounted on security vehicles, alongside clashes between protesters and security forces.
Urban Warfare Footage and Eyewitness Accounts
Videos circulating from Tehran neighborhoods show sustained gunfire by security forces in residential areas. Analysts reviewing a six-minute edited video from the Narmak district counted more than 200 gunshots, including what appeared to be automatic weapon fire.
Other footage from Tehran shows wounded and dead individuals being dragged through the streets by security forces, with visible blood on the asphalt. In several videos, security forces appear to collect bodies from the streets. Additional footage from Tehranpars shows prolonged use of heavy weapons. Elsewhere, BBC Persian journalist Farzad Seifi Karan reported that protesters briefly took control of the northern city of Loshan before security forces retook it using heavy weaponry.
Casualty Figures
Casualty estimates vary widely. CBS News reported on January 13, citing two sources inside Iran, that at least 12,000 people had been killed nationwide, with the figure possibly reaching 20,000 based on hospital records and reports from field activists.
Iranian authorities have released no official nationwide death toll. Reuters quoted an unnamed Iranian government official as saying approximately 2,000 people had been killed over a two-week period. Opposition groups have issued lower but still significant figures, underscoring the difficulty of verification amid the communications blackout.
Arrests and Detention Conditions
Arrests have intensified across the country. The outlet HalVash reported that at least 550 Baluch protesters were detained over five days in Zahedan, Chabahar, and Iranshahr, with more than 320 arrests in Zahedan alone.
Former detainees said nighttime raids targeted homes and included the arrest of women and children. They described beatings, blindfolding, overcrowded detention facilities, and threats of charges such as moharebeh—“enmity against God”—which can carry the death penalty.
Tasnim News Agency, which is affiliated with Iran’s security establishment, reported that police arrested 297 protesters, with two deaths and 17 injuries. Tasnim also claimed that 20 cases involved alleged links to what it described as terrorist groups connected to Israel.
Judicial Escalation
Iranian judicial officials have adopted increasingly hardline rhetoric. Tehran Prosecutor Ali Salehi said cases involving charges consistent with moharebeh had been referred to court and would be handled swiftly.
Human rights advocates warn that applying this charge to protesters blurs the distinction between civil unrest and armed crime and significantly increases the risk of death sentences. The prosecutor general has similarly called for punishment without leniency, according to Tasnim, heightening fears among families of detainees that executions could occur without warning.
Internet Blackout and Information Controls
Authorities imposed a near-total internet blackout beginning January 8, more than a week after protests erupted over economic pressure, currency devaluation, and rising living costs. The shutdown has included mobile data, broadband services, and text messaging, with only brief and limited outbound phone access reported.
Incoming international calls have remained largely impossible, while some calls from inside Iran to outside the country have been reported. Authorities have also targeted satellite dishes and equipment used to access services such as Starlink, one of the few remaining channels for information to leave the country.
While Tasnim denied reports of confiscations, residents in Isfahan, Shahr-e Kord, Shahin Shahr, Mahabad, Bukan, Marivan, and Sanandaj reported security forces entering homes to seize satellite equipment.
Human rights groups warn that with communications largely severed and families searching for missing relatives under threat, the full scale of deaths and detentions may not be known for weeks or months.
