The International Bar Association's Human Rights Institute (IBAHRI) expresses grave alarm and outrage at the intensified crackdown by Iranian authorities against protestors in the Islamic Republic of Iran.
Nationwide protests in Iran began on 28 December, sparked by soaring inflation and the collapse of the national currency, and rapidly evolved into widespread anti-government demonstrations against state corruption and repression. According to latest reports, at least 5,000 protestors have been killed since the start of the crackdown. However, obtaining accurate and up-to-date figures has been increasingly difficult due to the deliberate and ongoing internet and communications blackout since 8 January 2026, which has severely restricted the flow of information inside the country. Iranian news and human rights organisations estimate that the true death toll may be significantly higher.
The non-governmental organisation group Human Rights Activists in Iran (HRA) has documented mass arbitrary arrests and detentions, with over 16,000 people detained across the 186 cities where protests have occurred. Many individuals have been subjected to incommunicado detention, with no access to lawyers or family members, placing them at acute risk of torture and other forms of ill treatment.
According to reports, the security forces, including the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and the Iranian police force (FARAJA), have responded aggressively to the protests with the unlawful use of force and the deployment of live ammunition, military-grade weapons, shotguns firing metal pellets, water cannons and tear gas. Demonstrators and bystanders, including children, have been gravely wounded, blinded, maimed and paralysed, suffering head and eye injuries and gunshot wounds requiring urgent medical treatment.
IBAHRI Co-Chair, Mark Stephens CBE stated: 'The Iranian authorities are waging a campaign of terror against their own citizens. The unlawful and excessive use of force against protestors in Iran has become state policy, in violation of Article 27 of the Iranian Constitution and Article 9 and 21 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights , which guarantee the rights to liberty, security and peaceful assembly. There are reports of overwhelmed hospitals filled with gravely wounded protesters and morgues filled with body bags as families search among the dead for loved ones under heavy security presence. This is not law enforcement - it is the organised maiming and slaughter of civilians, with attempts to conceal evidence of these crimes. The international community must act to stop this cycle of rampant impunity, and states must urge the United Nations Security Council to refer the situation in Iran to the International Criminal Court to ensure perpetrators are held accountable.'
The IBAHRI further expresses profound concern at official statements reportedly made by senior Iranian officials branding protesters as war criminals, rioters, terrorists, agents of foreign powers and even mohareb (enemies of God), a charge punishable by death under Iranian law. In one such statement Mohammad Movahedi Azad, Iran's Prosecutor General, openly declared that all protesters would be prosecuted as mohareb, and that their cases must be handled 'without leniency, mercy or compromise.'
IBAHRI Co-Chair, Hina Jilani, remarked: 'Iranian officials are openly calling for protesters to be processed through the special branches of the Revolutionary Courts and condemned to death in sham proceedings. We witnessed this same machinery of repression during the "Women, Life, Freedom" protests in 2022: expedited trials, forced confessions, executions and total impunity for those responsible. IBAHRI opposes the death penalty in all circumstances and unequivocally condemns its use as a tool to silence legitimate demands for freedom, dignity and reform. The Revolutionary Courts systematically deny defendants access to independent lawyers, due process and even the most basic safeguards of justice. We call on the authorities of the Islamic Republic of Iran to immediately halt all executions, overturn death sentences issued to protestors and comply with its binding obligations under international human rights law.'
IBAHRI Director and Chair of the High Level Panel of Legal Experts on Media Freedom, Baroness Helena Kennedy LT KC, said: 'The deliberate shutdown of internet access in Iran is a calculated strategy to conceal serious human rights abuses, which may amount to international crimes. This assault by the authorities to supress the widespread call of the Iranian people for fundamental change and reform has led to restricted access to information, an essential element to the protection of fundamental rights. We demand an end to this chaos and call for the immediate restoration of the internet and communications services, as well as full respect for the rights to freedom of expression, association and peaceful assembly, as guaranteed in international law.'
At this dark time, the IBAHRI stands in solidarity with the people of Iran who continue to demand dignity, justice and fundamental freedoms in the face of brutal repression. We call on the Iranian authorities to immediately end the violent crackdown and for the unconditional and immediate release of all those arbitrarily detained, ensuring that they are granted swift access to their families and any medical or legal assistance required.
The IBAHRI joins the international community, including the United Nations Independent International Fact-Finding Mission on the Islamic Republic of Iran , to caution against threats or acts of unilateral military intervention by third states that are contrary to international law. In light of the repeated and documented crimes under international law, including mass killings, torture, rape, enforced disappearances and mass arbitrary detentions, and the entrenched climate of impunity enabling these crimes, the IBAHRI urges states to take coordinated action to:
- proscribe the IRGC as an out-of-control militia;
- impose targeted sanctions, including travel bans and asset freezes, against those responsible;
- urge the UN Security Council to refer the situation to the ICC; and
- initiate criminal investigations under the principle of universal jurisdiction, with a view to pursuing arrest warrants and advancing justice and accountability for the serious crimes committed in Iran.
