‘We are more determined than afraid,’ protester says

An Iranian man calling from Kerman told Iran International that protesters continued to return to the streets despite injuries during protests earlier this month, and described what he said were unusually harsh chemical agents used by security forces.

Kambiz said that during the protests, he met a 16-year-old girl who had been wounded the night before but still returned to the streets.

“She said she had been hit with pellets from the waist down and came back again the next night,” he said.

He also described symptoms he experienced after exposure to tear gas.

“It smelled different, and my skin felt burned,” Kambiz said.

An Iranian man who recently left Tehran told Iran International that protests during two nights of demonstrations on January 8 and 9 spread block by block, with crowds repeatedly regrouping after security forces withdrew.

Parsa said he saw major streets briefly fall under protester control, followed by rapid crackdowns and visible signs of violence left behind.

“The next morning the vehicles were gone, but their burned marks were still on the asphalt,” he said.

He said protests later shifted into highly localized cycles, with residents returning to streets as soon as forces moved on.

Witnesses told Iran International that a well-known Iranian taekwondo athlete and coach was killed during protests earlier this month after trying to help wounded demonstrators.

The man, identified as Afshin Miarkiani, was killed on the evening of Jan. 8.

According to the witnesses, security forces noticed him as he tried to assist injured protesters and then shot him from behind. He died at the scene.

An Iranian from Cyprus told Iran International that the violence in Iran should be treated as a global issue, urging governments to take steps beyond statements and condemnations.

Peyman said the scale of the bloodshed had turned the crisis into what he called a confrontation with freedom itself.

“This is not only about our country anymore, and it is a declaration of war on freedom,” he said.

He criticized symbolic actions by foreign governments as inadequate. “Statements and condemnations do not help.”

An Iranian woman calling Iran International from the Netherlands said pressure and threats against critics extend beyond Iran’s borders, warning that fear has become systematic and long-lasting for those who speak out.

Mira said she had lived for years under surveillance and intimidation in Iran and now faces similar pressure abroad because of her public criticism.

“These fears are not imagined, and they have been placed inside us in a systematic way,” she said.

She urged international media and governments to move beyond documenting testimony.

“Do not just record people’s voices, and take them seriously,” she said.