UN: Iranian Authorities Committed Crimes Against Humanity in January 2026 Suppression of Nationwide Protests
Murder, Torture, Other Inhumane Acts Committed as Part of a ‘Widespread and Systematic Attack Directed Against a Civilian Population’
September 24, 2026 — The September 2026 report of the Independent International Fact-Finding Mission on the Islamic Republic of Iran documents a major escalation in the Iranian authorities’ repression of the nationwide protests that began on 28 December 2025, finding that the State response involved widespread killings, serious injuries, mass arrests and detention, torture and ill-treatment, interference with medical care, suppression of communications, and intensified use of the death penalty.
Most significantly, the Mission concludes that many of the gross human rights violations committed by the Iranian authorities amount to crimes against humanity.
The Mission interviewed 73 people and examined satellite imagery, photographs, videos, medical records and information from credible human rights organizations and experts.
Key Findings of the FFMI’s September 2026 report:
1. A significant escalation in lethal repression
The protests spread to all 31 provinces and more than 200 cities in Iran, involving men, women, older people, children, and entire families. The Mission found killings by security forces on a large scale across all 31 provinces, with particularly high numbers reported in Tehran, Karaj, Mashhad, Isfahan and Rasht. It notes the state’s response was distinguished from previous protests by the scale of the violence and killings, describing it as a significant escalation.
The Mission was not able to establish a definitive casualty figure because government figures lacked sufficient detail and differed from information collected by credible organizations. Nevertheless, it says it has “strong grounds to believe” that the true figures for deaths and injuries are significantly higher than the Government’s reported toll.
2. Security forces used lethal force against people who posed no imminent threat
The Mission found a recurring pattern in which security forces used tear gas followed by shotgun fire with metal pellets against protesters who did not present an imminent threat of death or serious injury.
Medical evidence documented pellet injuries to the eyes, head, chest and upper body. The pattern of injuries, according to the Mission, suggested that security forces intended to maximize the damage caused by this ammunition.
Eye injuries were particularly severe. The head of Farabi Hospital in Tehran reported that more than 700 people sought treatment for eye injuries between 8 and 10 January, with some suffering severe or total loss of vision.
The Mission also documented the use of other lethal ammunition, including rifle fire. Verified videos showed armed security personnel firing from rooftops and other elevated positions toward crowds. Witnesses reported sustained automatic gunfire in several cities and people being shot in the head, eyes, neck, chest, abdomen, and lower body. Witnesses reported people being shot from behind, indicating they were fleeing and did not present an imminent threat.
3. Children were among those killed and seriously injured
Children participated in the protests and were also among those killed and injured. The Mission reports that a credible human rights organization had collected the names of at least 221 children who were killed during the protests, including six children under the age of 10 and two reportedly only two years old. The report does not present the 221 figure as a final casualty count.
4. Authorities interfered with medical treatment and targeted healthcare workers
The crackdown placed extraordinary pressure on medical facilities. The Mission found credible information that healthcare facilities in at least nine provinces were forced to operate beyond capacity because of the number of injured people requiring urgent treatment.
At the same time, security forces monitored hospitals, searched for injured protesters and, in some cases, arrested or detained patients or people accompanying them.
The result was that some injured people delayed or avoided seeking medical treatment because they feared identification, arrest and detention. The Mission received information indicating some healthcare workers were threatened, intimidated, arrested, or detained for treating protesters or objecting to the presence of security forces in medical facilities.
5. The nationwide Internet shutdown obstructed communication and access to information
On January 8, 2026, during the most violent phase of the protests, the Government imposed a nationwide shutdown of Internet and mobile communications. The Mission says the shutdown lasted nearly five months, making it the longest nationwide Internet shutdown on record. During January 8 and 9, virtually all digital communications were suspended nationwide apart from digital landline telephone services.
The consequences were severe. People could not reliably communicate with family members, confirm whether relatives or friends were safe, seek medical or emergency assistance, or get information about events happening around them. The shutdown also made it difficult for families to establish the fate and whereabouts of people who had disappeared during the crackdown.
6. Large-scale arrests, detention and torture
The authorities carried out large-scale arrests during and after the protests. Credible human rights organizations reported that tens of thousands had been detained.
The Mission received information concerning:
- arrests of protesters, including children;
- arrests of healthcare workers assisting protesters;
- the summoning of lawyers assisting protesters;
- detention of people who publicly criticized the use of force;
- torture and ill-treatment in detention;
- prolonged solitary confinement;
- deprivation of prescribed medication; and
- lengthy interrogations without a lawyer present.
In cases where families were unable to establish the fate or whereabouts of detained relatives, the Mission says this raised concerns about enforced disappearances.
7. Authorities interfered with the burial and mourning of those killed
The Mission also documents the treatment of families after protesters were killed. Authorities reportedly delayed or refused to release bodies, sometimes demanding payment. In some cases, families were denied death certificates or required to sign statements attributing deaths to “terrorists” or falsely identifying deceased relatives as members of the security forces.
Families were also subjected to restrictions and intimidation concerning funerals and memorial ceremonies. Authorities reportedly limited the number of mourners, restricted burial locations, and threatened families seeking to hold commemorative events.
8. The death penalty was intensified as a tool of repression
The report documents an intensified use of executions on security-related charges. Since the beginning of 2026, the Government has announced the execution of at least 58 individuals on security-related charges. This included 29 people executed in connection with the 2025/26 protests since March 2026.
The Mission also reports that more than 70 people, including women and juveniles, remained at imminent risk of being sentenced to death or executed in relation to the protests.
The report identifies serious fair-trial concerns in death-penalty cases, including expedited proceedings, denial of access to lawyers of one’s choosing, lack of access to case information, closed proceedings, limited opportunities to appeal and the use of Revolutionary Courts.
The Mission also examined allegations that confessions had been obtained through torture. In some cases, the death penalty was imposed following very rapid proceedings. The Mission gives examples of people being sentenced to death within weeks of arrest and subsequently executed.
9. Children were sentenced to death
The Mission states unequivocally that imposing the death penalty on individuals who were under 18 at the time of the alleged offense is absolutely prohibited under international human rights law.
It identifies at least three people sentenced to death who were under 18 when the alleged offenses occurred, including two 17-year-old boys.
10. The Mission’s central legal finding: crimes against humanity
The Mission finds that many of the gross human rights violations committed by the Iranian authorities amount to crimes against humanity, including: murder; imprisonment and other severe deprivation of physical liberty; torture; and other inhumane acts.
The Mission concludes that these acts were committed as part of a “widespread and systematic attack directed against a civilian population”—namely protesters, including children, their supporters and perceived dissenting or opposing actors, including members of political groups, civil society organizations and professional associations—and therefore amount to crimes against humanity under international law.
Overall conclusion
The Mission concludes that the Iranian Government’s response to the 2025/26 protests was a significant escalation in the scale of killings and violence, the severing of communications, the use of repressive laws and the increasing use of the death penalty.
Its findings establish a pattern extending from the streets to hospitals, prisons, courtrooms and the treatment of victims’ families: lethal force against protesters and bystanders; severe injuries, including permanent blindness; interference with medical care; mass arrests; torture and ill-treatment; restrictions on information and communications; interference with mourning; and executions following proceedings that frequently violated fair-trial guarantees.
Most importantly, the Mission concludes that many of these violations amount to crimes against humanity, committed as part of a widespread and systematic attack directed against a civilian population. For the full report, see here.
