Estonian lawmaker urges West to back Iranian people against ‘mass terror’

Witnesses told Iran International that elderly women and men were among those killed during a violent crackdown on protests in the city of Malayer, in Iran’s western Hamadan province.

According to the accounts many families were forced to bury their dead quietly and without public funerals.

The source said security forces held at least 35 bodies and demanded large sums of money from families in exchange for returning them.

Witnesses told Iran International that security forces prevented injured protesters from receiving medical care at a private clinic in Gilan province in northern Iran during demonstrations earlier this month.

According to the accounts, a doctor in the province had earlier said on social media that he was ready to offer free services such as first aid, stitches and wound care to those hurt in protests.

The witnesses said that on the day of the demonstrations, intelligence agents arrived at the clinic and ordered the doctor to stop seeing patients.

After a brief argument, the agents stayed outside the clinic and told people bringing injured protesters that it was closed, the witnesses said.

The account said the doctor was not allowed to leave the clinic until late at night, effectively keeping him inside.

As a result, many wounded protesters in the area were unable to receive treatment.

Iran’s intelligence agency in the western province of Kermanshah said it had detained 54 people it described as key figures in recent protests.

In a statement carried by state media, the provincial intelligence office said three people were arrested whom it accused of links to exiled militant groups, while others were detained over alleged ties to monarchist groups, Israel and armed groups.

Iranian authorities often describe protesters and opposition figures as being linked to foreign powers or militant groups.

Police in Iran’s Semnan province said they had detained five people they described as organizers of earlier protests, after carrying out several operations on the outskirts of the city.

The provincial police commander said the detentions followed what he described as intelligence monitoring of those he accused of playing key roles in the unrest, according to Iranian media.

Iranian authorities often use terms such as “organizers,” “agitators” or “rioters” to describe people involved in protests.

Internet monitoring group NetBlocks said Iran has been largely cut off from the global internet for two weeks, after authorities imposed sweeping restrictions during nationwide protests.

In a post on X, NetBlocks said: “With the digital blackout silencing Iranians’ voices, authorities perpetrated one of the deadliest crackdowns in modern history.”

It added: “Iran was cut off from the world as people went out on the streets to call for change.”