Rights groups and Iranian officials are offering sharply different accounts of the toll from Iran's recent
By Sammy,
Rights groups and Iranian officials are offering sharply different accounts of the toll from Iran's recent protests, which erupted in late December and saw some of the deadliest violence in the country's northwestern Kurdish regions.
An Iranian official, speaking anonymously to Reuters, says authorities have verified at least 5,000 deaths nationwide, including around 500 members of the security forces. The official blamed what he called "terrorists and armed rioters" for the killing of civilians, describing the victims as "innocent Iranians." He claimed the most severe clashes occurred in Kurdish-populated areas, where unrest has historically been among the most violent, and said the final death toll is not expected to rise substantially.
The same source alleged that protesters received support and weapons from abroad, accusing Israel and other foreign-based armed groups of involvement. Iranian officials frequently attribute domestic unrest to foreign enemies, including Israel, which Tehran considers a chief adversary and which carried out strikes in June against Iran's nuclear and ballistic missile programs.
By contrast, independent organizations report lower figures. The US-based Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA) said it had confirmed 3,308 deaths, with another 4,382 cases still under review, and documented more than 24,000 arrests. Meanwhile, the Norway-based Kurdish rights group Hengaw has also claimed that Kurdish regions in the northwest experienced some of the fiercest clashes during the unrest.
Topics: Iran, Missile Defense & Alerts
Reported by Sammy for Bernie News Network. See our editorial standards and corrections policy.