A U.S.-based rights group says nearly 6,000 people have been killed in Iran’s ongoing protest crackdown, as Tehran warns Washington against any form of intervention. The demonstrations, which began in late December over economic hardship, quickly evolved into mass protests against the Islamic republic, with huge rallies from January 8 and a nationwide internet shutdown now in its 18th day.
The Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA) said it has confirmed 5,848 deaths, including 209 security personnel, and is still investigating a further 17,091 possible fatalities. It also reported at least 41,283 arrests. By contrast, Iranian authorities last week gave an official toll of 3,117 dead, mostly described as security forces or bystanders killed by “rioters”.
Rights monitors accuse security forces of firing directly at protesters under cover of the internet blackout. NetBlocks said the shutdown is “obscuring the extent of a deadly crackdown”, with Iran tightening its “filternet” while regime accounts promote the official narrative.
The unrest comes as the U.S. masses forces in the region. President Donald Trump has said he would prefer to avoid conflict but has kept military options open, confirming that a “massive fleet” headed to the Gulf “just in case”, including the USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier.
Iran’s foreign ministry warned of a “comprehensive and regret-inducing response to any aggression”, insisting Tehran is confident in its ability to defend itself. A new anti-U.S. billboard in Tehran’s Enghelab Square depicts an American aircraft carrier being destroyed, alongside the English slogan: “If you sow the wind, you will reap the whirlwind.”
HRANA’s figures follow an unverified report by Persian-language channel Iran International claiming over 36,500 people were killed between January 8 and 9 alone. Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who last appeared in public on January 17, vowed authorities would “break the back of the seditionists”, while Iran-backed Hezbollah in Lebanon has staged rallies in support of Tehran “in the face of American-Zionist sabotage and threats”.
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