Iranian authorities have executed at least 34 people in connection with the January protests, conducted mass trials resulting in death sentences and detained thousands, UN Special Rapporteur Mai Sato said Wednesday.
Addressing the UN General Assembly, Sato described the scale of human rights violations during her two-year Iran mandate as extraordinary. “I struggled to find its precedent in recent history,” she said, warning that her findings represented only a fraction of the abuses committed against Iranians.
Her report, covering February through August 2026 following the December-January nationwide protests, detailed how the Islamic Republic used the war with the United States and Israel to intensify repression, treating peaceful protesters as agents of hostile foreign powers.
In just one case, 34 defendants were tried in five days, with 12 sentenced to death and seven already executed. She said such proceedings could not establish individual criminal responsibility, rendering the death sentences arbitrary.
Sato said senior Iranian officials had publicly demanded expedited trials, while courts conducted mass proceedings and broadcast alleged confessions within days of arrests. She added that lawyers defending protesters had been summoned, threatened and, in some cases, arrested.
The special rapporteur also reported thousands of arrests on national security charges, with many detainees held incommunicado at undisclosed locations, a pattern she described as enforced disappearance. She said families of protesters killed in the crackdown faced threats of prosecution and asset confiscation for demanding accountability, while some were denied the right to hold funerals.
Sato also described prisoners left locked inside overcrowded cells during airstrikes, with bars reportedly welded to ward doors. Government-imposed internet shutdowns prevented civilians from receiving warnings about incoming attacks and made documenting abuses dangerous. Under Iranian espionage legislation, sharing information with foreign media can carry the death penalty.
She said the authorities continued withholding information about executions and killings by security forces while publishing protest death tolls far below independent estimates.
“The result is that there is no lawful way left to dissent,” Sato said.
The UN's Independent International Fact-Finding Mission, which addressed the same session, concluded that the suppression of January's nationwide protests amounted to crimes against humanity. Sato said she saw no reason to depart from that finding.
Iran and allies challenge UN findings
Iran's representative, Ali Karimi Magham, rejected both UN investigative mechanisms, describing them as illegitimate and politically engineered instruments unrelated to genuine human rights protection.
Russia accused the investigators of advancing Western political interests and disregarding Iran's “complex and unique sociocultural context.”
North Korea similarly rejected the investigations, accusing the UN of the “weaponization of human rights.” Its representative argued that countries should determine their own societal models free from external interference and that country-specific investigations violated national sovereignty.
China concentrated on the consequences of war and sanctions, urging respect for Iran's sovereignty and calling for the removal of unilateral economic restrictions. Beijing said such measures violated economic and social rights and worsened the population's hardship.
Sato responded to Tehran's objections by pointing out that Iranian authorities had engaged with her office throughout her mandate, including extensively over the war, while continuing to withhold information about killings carried out by their own security forces.
Western governments condemn Iran’s crackdown
Other delegations focused on the violations documented by the UN investigators, particularly the killing of protesters, executions and torture.
Britain described the killing of children during the January crackdown as “abhorrent” and condemned the torture of detainees, widespread violence against peaceful protesters and the authorities' internet shutdowns.
Australia accused Iranian authorities of using lethal force, mass arrests and a nationwide communications blackout to silence dissent and isolate Iranians from the outside world.
The European Union called for an immediate halt to executions, condemning the use of capital punishment and torture to suppress political opposition. It also warned about reprisals against critics, including those living abroad.
The Netherlands said the findings confirmed gross human rights violations, particularly a dramatic escalation in lethal force and mass arrests during the protests.
Canada raised concerns about proposed legislation that would criminalize contact with foreign organizations, civil society groups and diplomatic missions, potentially further restricting communication between Iranians and the outside world.
Sato also documented discrimination against Kurds, Baluch, Arabs and Azerbaijani Turks, alongside continuing persecution of Baha'is and Christian converts.
In her concluding remarks, Sato called on the United States and Israel to end hostilities and investigate their strikes, while urging Iranian authorities to halt executions and repression and investigate deaths caused by their forces.
Instead, she said, repression had deepened the grievances driving people into the streets.
Iran's two biggest soccer rivals met in their first women's derby on Wednesday, a historic occasion overshadowed by restrictions on male spectators and journalists and uncertainty over live television coverage.
Persepolis defeated Esteghlal 2-1 at Shahr-e Qods Stadium west of Tehran, marking the first-ever meeting between the women's teams of two clubs whose rivalry has dominated Iranian men's soccer for decades.
Fatemeh Rezaei and Somayeh Esmaeili scored for Persepolis in the first half before Niloufar Azimi pulled one back for Esteghlal after the break.
Female spectators were eventually allowed to attend following days of uncertainty and intervention by government officials. Men, however, remained barred from women's soccer matches under restrictions that also extended to journalists, photographers and technical personnel.
Prosecutor threatens legal action
Tehran prosecutor Ali Salehi on Tuesday sent separate letters to Sports Minister Ahmad Donyamali and Iranian Football Federation President Mehdi Taj demanding that men be barred from women's soccer matches.
The restrictions covered male spectators, journalists, photographers, camera operators, security personnel and event staff. Salehi warned that prosecutors would take legal action if they were violated.
The warning followed reports of female spectators attending women's league matches without the headscarves required under Iran's mandatory hijab laws, as well as men being present at the games.
Prosecutors described the incidents as violations of Islamic regulations and public decency.
The Iranian Football League Organization had already issued a directive prohibiting men from attending women's soccer matches, including male media workers and club executives.
Farideh Shojaei, the Football Federation's vice president for women's affairs, confirmed ahead of the derby that men would not be permitted to attend.
The restrictions also raised practical questions about organizing the match, particularly the use of video assistant referee (VAR) technology, which relies on technical personnel and match officials.
The league had previously called for a male official to be removed from the VAR team for the derby, adding to uncertainty over how the technology would be operated.
The dispute over attendance came after a series of changes to the arrangements for the historic fixture.
Originally scheduled for Friday, October 23, at Kazemi Stadium, the home ground of Persepolis' women's team, the match was moved to Wednesday, October 28, at Shahr-e Qods Stadium.
The league organization cited anticipated demand from supporters and the need for better facilities, although the change also shifted the match from Iran's weekly day off to a working day.
Ticket sales were suspended twice in the days leading up to the game, while the final decision on whether female spectators could attend was referred to the Tehran Provincial Security Council.
At one point, there were concerns that the encounter could take place behind closed doors despite the anticipated interest from supporters.
Women were eventually permitted to attend following discussions involving Vice President for Women and Family Affairs Zahra Behrouz-Azar and Sports Ministry officials.
Government spokesperson Fatemeh Mohajerani also attended the match, according to Iranian media reports.
Government spokesperson Fatemeh Mohajerani also attended the match, according to Iranian media reports.
Women's soccer struggles for television exposure
The restrictions extended beyond stadium access, raising questions about how widely the first women's derby would be seen.
Iran's state broadcaster, IRIB, had announced no plans to televise the match, while reports ahead of the game indicated restrictions on broadcasts through the two clubs' own platforms.
The uncertainty contrasted with the men's Esteghlal-Persepolis derby, one of Iran's biggest sporting events, which regularly attracts large television audiences.
For the women's teams, limited broadcasting and media access also restrict opportunities to build a following, attract commercial sponsors and gain wider public recognition.
Female soccer players in Iran are required to wear mandatory hijab while competing and have long faced unequal access to sporting facilities and limited media exposure.
The first meeting between the women's teams of Esteghlal and Persepolis offered an opportunity to showcase their talents to a national audience. Instead, much of the attention ahead of the match centered on restrictions over who could attend, photograph or broadcast it.
A different picture elsewhere in the region
The restrictions surrounding Iran's first women's derby contrast with similar fixtures involving major soccer clubs elsewhere in the region, where women's competitions have attracted television coverage, government support and spectators of both sexes.
In December 2021, Turkish rivals Fenerbahce and Galatasaray held their first women's derby as a friendly match at Istanbul's Nef Stadium.
Organized as part of a campaign against violence toward women, the match was attended by male and female supporters, broadcast on national television and watched by Turkey's justice and family ministers.
Then-Justice Minister Abdulhamit Gul said afterward: "Whatever the result, women are the winners."
Saudi Arabia staged its first women's Jeddah derby between Al-Ittihad and Al-Ahli in October 2022, during the opening week of the country's Women's Premier League.
The match took place at King Abdullah Stadium, with spectators attending without gender restrictions.
Saudi women's soccer subsequently secured wider television exposure. Beginning with the 2023-2024 season, Women's Premier League matches were broadcast domestically on SSC sports channels and internationally through streaming platform DAZN outside the Middle East and North Africa.
Alia Al-Rasheed, head of women's soccer at the Saudi Football Federation, described the agreement as an opportunity to attract new audiences and inspire future generations of female players.
While Turkey and Saudi Arabia have expanded opportunities for women's soccer, Iranian female athletes continue to face mandatory hijab requirements, unequal facilities and restrictions on media exposure.
For Iran's women footballers, the first derby between the country's two biggest clubs was a milestone. But the restrictions surrounding it showed how far the women's game remains from enjoying the visibility routinely afforded to its male counterpart.
Iranian authorities have arrested a female fitness blogger after videos showing women exercising without hijab at a Tehran sports exhibition sparked criticism from hardline media.
The judiciary's Mizan news agency said the woman was arrested on charges including propaganda against the state and offending public sentiment by publishing photographs and videos from the Fitex exhibition.
An arrest warrant was also issued for another person involved in planning the exhibition, Mizan said, without identifying either individual or specifying which images or videos prompted the action.
The fifth edition of Fitex, a fitness and sports equipment exhibition, was held from October 21 to 23 at Goftogoo Park in western Tehran.
Photographs and videos circulated on social media showed female athletes performing fitness routines and acrobatic movements, some without headscarves and others exercising to music.
Under Iran's mandatory hijab laws, women are required to cover their hair in public, including at sporting and cultural events.
The footage prompted criticism from hardline media outlets and supporters of the Islamic Republic, some of whom demanded judicial action against the organizers.
Hardline media demand action
The IRGC-affiliated Tasnim news agency criticized what it called "widespread violations of social norms" at the exhibition on October 25 and urged sports authorities and other institutions to intervene.
The Student News Network, affiliated with the student branch of the Basij militia, quoted one of its reporters as saying anyone viewing the images would experience "secondhand embarrassment."
As criticism intensified, Iran's Sports Ministry issued a statement on October 25 distancing itself from the event, saying neither the ministry nor Tehran's provincial sports authorities had organized the exhibition or granted it a permit.
Tehran prosecutors subsequently opened a criminal case against the organizers and others involved, citing alleged violations of legal and Islamic regulations, and summoned them for questioning.
Mizan said online pages associated with Fitex had been blocked as part of the proceedings and that investigations were continuing.
Restrictions extend to art exhibitions
The action against Fitex comes amid wider pressure on cultural activities and women's public appearance in Iran.
On October 26, Tehran prosecutors initiated legal proceedings against the organizers of Art Fair Tehran, also citing alleged failures to comply with legal and Islamic regulations.
Organizers were summoned to the prosecutor's office, while the exhibition's ticketing website and the organizer's social media account were blocked.
Earlier this month, the US-based Center for Human Rights in Iran said authorities were intensifying their crackdown on artists, writers, musicians and other cultural figures as part of a broader campaign to silence dissent and intimidate communities.
The rights group cited a source in Iran who linked the arrests of cultural activists to authorities' fears of renewed protests, particularly in economically disadvantaged areas amid worsening living conditions.
Iranian lawmakers are reviewing a new internet regulation bill that could expand authorities' powers to restrict online access, raising concerns over further controls after months of nationwide internet shutdowns.
The proposed Cyberspace Regulation Bill is being examined by a parliamentary committee, but its official text remains unpublished, Iranian news outlet Jamaran reported.
Parliament received the proposal on August 3, but lawmakers reviewing it have declined to disclose its provisions.
"A decision has been made not to publicize the details of the Cyberspace Regulation Bill for the time being," Rouhollah Abbaspour, spokesman for the parliamentary committee, said.
An unofficial 12-article draft circulating online resembles the controversial Internet Protection Bill, known as the Sianat plan, which stalled in the previous parliament. However, a committee member told local media that the version under review differs from the circulating text.
Lawmakers divided over restrictions
The proposal has drawn criticism within parliament, with some lawmakers questioning the need for additional controls when international internet access is already heavily restricted.
Mostafa Pourdehghan, a member of parliament's Industries and Mines Committee, criticized repeated attempts to restrict international connectivity and expand domestic alternatives, citing existing filtering, poor internet quality and rising costs.
Pourdehghan warned that further restrictions during wartime could increase public anxiety, particularly among young people, and predicted the bill would meet the same fate as the earlier so-called Protection Plan.
Lawyer warns of sweeping powers
Lawyer Kambiz Norouzi warned that the proposed legislation could give the Supreme Council of Cyberspace extensive authority while weakening government oversight.
In an editorial published by Shargh newspaper, Norouzi criticized Article 1 of the circulating draft, which designates the council as the highest authority for internet policymaking.
Article 6 would also allow internet access to be suspended or restricted on orders from judicial authorities or other competent bodies, without clearly identifying those additional authorities.
"This provision amounts to creating unlimited and unregulated power to violate fundamental freedoms and is certainly unconstitutional and illegitimate," Norouzi wrote.
Norouzi also argued that the bill would concentrate decision-making in an institution whose proceedings are largely closed to public scrutiny.
The official parliamentary text has not been published, leaving uncertainty over whether these provisions appear in the version under review.
Months of shutdowns and previous restrictions
The proposal follows months of internet disruption affecting millions of Iranians.
Authorities imposed a nationwide blackout on January 8, 2026, during anti-government protests. Connectivity was only partially restored before another near-total shutdown began on February 28 following the outbreak of war involving Iran, Israel and the United States.
The second blackout lasted 88 days, with international connectivity beginning to return on May 26.
Restrictions disrupted businesses, education and communications. Iran's Chamber of Commerce estimated direct economic losses at $30 million to $40 million daily, with indirect losses potentially doubling that figure.
The legislation follows years of attempts to expand state control over online communications.
The earlier so-called Protection Plan sought greater oversight of foreign platforms but stalled following public opposition.
In July 2025, President Masoud Pezeshkian's administration also withdrew a separate cyber censorship bill following criticism over its potential impact on free expression.
Authorities have continued developing the National Information Network, which allows selected domestic services to operate independently of international connectivity.
The Supreme Council of Cyberspace, established by former Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei in 2012, already plays a central role in internet policymaking.
For now, lawmakers remain divided over the proposal's prospects, while the refusal to release its official text has left its scope, legal implications and potential impact on internet access unclear.
Iran's judiciary has indicted comedian Saeed Shakiba on charges including supporting Israel and the Pahlavi dynasty, state media reported on Sunday, days after authorities opened a case against him over a video impersonating former Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei.
The judiciary-affiliated Mizan news agency said Tehran prosecutors had issued the indictment following an investigation into what authorities described as insulting and offensive content published by the comedian on Instagram.
According to Mizan, the charges include knowingly expressing support for Israel on social media, insult and engaging in propaganda against the Islamic Republic through negative portrayals of the country and support for the Pahlavi dynasty, which ruled Iran until the 1979 Islamic Revolution.
Mizan said the case had been referred to court for further proceedings.
Shakiba came under scrutiny after publishing a satirical video on October 13 in which he imitated Khamenei's voice, parodying his meetings with poets.
On October 14, Mizan announced that Tehran prosecutors had opened a case against a social media personality identified only by the initials S.Sh., accusing him of publishing insulting and offensive content.
The agency said action had been taken against the individual but provided no details about the measures, the specific charges or his whereabouts.
US-based rights group Human Rights Activists in Iran (HRANA) reported on October 14 that authorities had opened a case against Shakiba following the satirical video, saying the judiciary had not disclosed details about the proceedings or his situation.
Shakiba is known for posting comedy videos and voice impressions of prominent figures on Instagram, where he had around one million followers.
Following the announcement of legal proceedings, posts on his Instagram account were removed. A notice bearing the emblem of Iran's police said the account had been restricted by judicial order over what authorities called criminal content.
The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps-affiliated Fars news agency also criticized the video, accusing Shakiba of insulting Khamenei and his family.
Shakiba had previously published satirical impressions of other Islamic Republic officials and expressed support for protestors killed during the January uprising.
Previous arrests and prosecutions of Iranian comedians
Iranian authorities have previously arrested and sentenced comedians and satirists over their work, drawing criticism from human rights groups.
Last month, Shaker Bori, a comedian and social media personality from the southwestern city of Abadan, was sentenced to 13 months and 20 days in prison for disseminating false information with the intent to harm others, according to the rights group HRANA.
Bori was also fined 45 million rials (approximately $17) for insulting a member of parliament. The case followed a complaint by lawmaker Mousa Ghazanfarabadi over a video Bori had published.
Bori had previously been arrested on July 31, 2023, after reporting to an Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps intelligence office in Abadan to seek the return of his confiscated mobile phone, according to the Norway-based rights group Hengaw.
He was released on bail on August 10, 2023, after spending 10 days in detention.
Another comedian, Zeinab Mousavi, known for her online character Empress Kuzco, was sentenced to six months in prison in November 2025 over a satirical video about Ferdowsi, the celebrated Persian poet.
In February 2026, a Tehran appeals court upheld the sentence, which also included a fine of 160 million rials (approximately $59) and an order to write a research paper about Ferdowsi, according to HRANA.
Mousavi had previously been arrested in October 2022 in the central city of Qom during nationwide protests sparked by the death of Mahsa Amini in morality police custody. She was released on bail in November that year and subsequently sentenced to two years in prison.
Mousavi said she had spent 25 days in solitary confinement during her detention.
She was arrested again in 2023 and released several days later, according to HRANA.
In another case, satirical writer Kioomars Marzban was arrested at his home on August 26, 2018, by Revolutionary Guard intelligence agents.
Marzban was sentenced in August 2019 to 23 years and nine months in prison on charges including insulting the supreme leader, propaganda against the Islamic Republic and cooperating with a hostile state, according to HRANA.
The sentence, of which 11 years were enforceable under Iranian law, was upheld on appeal in October 2019.
Marzban was released from Tehran's Evin prison in February 2021 after serving approximately two and a half years. His lawyer, Mohammad Hossein Aghasi, said six years of his sentence had been pardoned and the remainder suspended, according to freedom of expression organization ARTICLE 19.
Following his release, ARTICLE 19 condemned his prosecution, saying he should never have been imprisoned for his writing.
"His case is emblematic of the Iranian authorities' zero tolerance for freedom of expression and the Judiciary's lack of independence," said Saloua Ghazouani, then director of ARTICLE 19's Middle East and North Africa program.
PEN America has also criticized Iran's treatment of satirical artists. In June 2023, the organization condemned the arrest of cartoonist Atena Farghadani following the publication of a satirical drawing on Instagram.
"Cartoonists should not be persecuted for their creative expression," said Julie Trébault, then director of PEN America's Artists at Risk Connection.
PEN America said the arrest reflected broader efforts by Iranian authorities to intimidate artists, journalists and activists.
Armed security forces and checkpoints have become more visible across Iran, according to witness reports sent to Iran International, while internet access has deteriorated amid fears of fresh unrest and another round of war.
Accounts from Tehran, Mashhad, Isfahan, Dezful, Hamedan and other cities over the past week describe armed Basij members and riot police at major intersections and public squares, new checkpoints and additional surveillance cameras.
Users in several provinces also say internet speeds have fallen sharply, circumvention tools have stopped working and access to social media has become increasingly difficult.
The individual reports cannot all be independently verified, but describe similar changes across widely separated parts of the country.
More armed forces on the streets
In Dezful in southwestern Iran, one resident said the city had become “heavily securitized,” particularly around the city center and Shariati Street.
The resident attributed the increased presence to government concern about possible protests around the anniversary of the November 2019 uprising, when demonstrations triggered by a sudden increase in fuel prices were met with a deadly crackdown.
In Tehran, a resident reported a Basij checkpoint on Khavaran Street from Thursday evening, while other accounts described increased security patrols elsewhere in the capital and neighboring Karaj.
Residents of Mashhad reported armed Basij members around Mellat Park.
In Isfahan, armed deployments were reported around major squares, while residents of Hamedan and Borujerd described increased security activity.
Iran International reported similar deployments in September around the fourth anniversary of the death in custody of Mahsa Jina Amini.
More cameras and surveillance
Residents have also reported an expansion of surveillance infrastructure.
A resident of Astara, a small city on the Caspian coast near the Azerbaijani border, said security cameras were being installed in squares and neighborhoods across the city.
“They are installing cameras neighborhood by neighborhood in a city this small,” the resident said. “Look how afraid they are of the people.”
Another resident reported more surveillance cameras around Tehran's Sadeghieh district.
Tehran municipality announced last year that it planned to install 15,000 surveillance cameras across the capital, while security agencies have used camera footage to identify protesters and enforce government restrictions.
Internet slowdown
Residents in Semnan, Shiraz, Tabriz, Kerman, Tehran and elsewhere told Iran International that connections had slowed markedly, VPNs had stopped functioning and social media platforms had become increasingly difficult to reach.
A Shiraz resident said internet access had been extremely slow for about six days, while in Kerman one user said even paid VPN services were failing.
A resident of Tonekabon on the Caspian coast said Irancell mobile internet was being cut at night. Other users reported disruption to both fixed and mobile connections.
The cause of the disruptions is unclear, and the accounts do not establish that the security deployments and deteriorating internet access are part of a coordinated operation.
But they come against the backdrop of Iran's extensive use of internet shutdowns during periods of political unrest and conflict.
Tech outlet Zooman reported this week that authorities had issued instructions for international internet access to be cut immediately in the event of another war.
When Israel and the US attacked Iran in February, authorities imposed a nationwide internet blackout that lasted about 88 days, the longest recorded in any country, according to NetBlocks.
The latest disruptions also coincide with sharp increases in the cost of getting online.
Iran's two largest mobile operators, Hamrah-e Aval and Irancell, raised prices for calls, text messages and internet packages by as much as 40% on Friday, citing higher equipment, maintenance and infrastructure costs.
“By making the internet more expensive, they have closed our last route to the free world,” one resident told Iran International. “For me, when the internet was my only comfort and source of income, even being present in this space is no longer possible.”
