2026/01/17Report: Violin Teacher Sanam Pourbabaei Killed in Lahijan Protests
Reports say Sanam Pourbabaei , a violin instructor , died on Thursday, 18 Dey 1404 (January 8, 2026), during protests in Lahijan , near the governorate building. She was originally from Siahkal , and her body was reportedly buried at the Barfjan shrine in that شهرستان. The account describes Pourbabaei as a music educator and cultural figure and argues her death underscores that the crackdown has extended beyond street protesters to ordinary citizens, artists, and cultural workers. The circumstances and attribution in this report have not been independently verified.
2026/01/17Report: 17-Year-Old Student Killed in Karaj Protest
Reports say Barna Dehghani , a 17-year-old student from Karaj , was killed on Friday, 19 Dey 1404, during protests in the city after being shot by government forces. The account identifies him as a Baha’i teenager and quotes him responding to his parents’ pleas not to leave home: “If I don’t go, nothing will change.” (Note: your text lists “9 January 2025,” but 19 Dey 1404 corresponds to January 9, 2026 .)
2026/01/17Fardis, Karaj: Hope in the Streets—Then a Brutal Crackdown
A narrative from Fardis, Karaj , dated Thursday, 18 Dey 1404 (January 8, 2026) describes a day when many Iranian cities saw unusually large crowds in the streets, with people celebrating, flashing victory signs, and believing the scale of turnout signaled a turning point. The account says protesters did not anticipate how ruthlessly security forces would respond, alleging people were met with indiscriminate live fire and an “unprecedented” level of killing. The message frames the crackdown as a major crime that will carry severe consequences for the leadership and its supporters.
2026/01/17Kermanshah Doctor: Hospitals Overrun, Morgues Overflowed After First Night
A doctor from Kermanshah, speaking to the Tavaana organization, described a “horrific” scale of deaths and injuries on the first night of the public call to protest, saying the number of casualties was so high that hospital morgue capacity could not cope. The physician said that, unlike typical mass-casualty incidents—where most trauma cases concentrate in specialized centers— every hospital in the city, public and private , was inundated as ambulances and residents took the wounded wherever they could. The doctor alleged a three-year-old child was killed by a government-affiliated plainclothes force, and claimed authorities initially recorded the death as protest-related before attempting a new narrative later. The account also said many victims were shot in the back while fleeing , and described wounds consistent with high-destruction live ammunition , including severe vascular damage where even a thigh wound could be fatal. The doctor cited one case—a head nurse at Kermanshah’s cardiac specialty hospital—who reportedly died despite multiple surgeries due to catastrophic vascular injury, and added that three healthcare workers in Kermanshah were also killed by gunfire. These claims have not been independently verified.
2026/01/17Urmia Eyewitness: “The City Feels Like an Undeclared Martial Law Zone”
A citizen from Urmia, speaking to the Tavaana organization, described an unprecedented escalation of repression in recent days—mass arrests, killings, and enforced disappearances—after large crowds joined street protests from Thursday through Sunday. The witness said the turnout was “beyond imagination” despite attempts to sow division, but that from Saturday onward, “many were detained and many were killed,” adding that one of their own friends was arrested and has since disappeared with no information from police stations, prisons, or courts. The account also alleged security forces, in some cases, took people directly from their homes and returned bodies the next day, while the city has been saturated with armed personnel—security forces, Basij, and plainclothes units—moving in groups. The witness said nighttime vehicle stops and searches intensify after 10 p.m., describing Urmia as effectively under an undeclared martial law, and noted many families are reportedly searching for missing relatives while officials repeatedly deny holding them. These claims have not been independently verified.
2026/01/17“A Carpet of Bodies”: Survivor Account From Islamshahr’s Bagh-e Feyz
A new narrative shared by Farangis Bayat describes what she says was relayed by a survivor from Islamshahr’s Bagh-e Feyz street: the witness claims a machine gun emplacement was set up, initially perceived as intimidation, before the crowd grew and, as the person tried to return home, the street had become “a carpet of bodies,” making passage impossible. The accompanying message urges Iranians to document and amplify eyewitness testimonies—through writing, film, and storytelling—arguing that authorities are attempting to distort reality and bury the scale of what people say occurred, and characterizing the events as among the largest massacres since World War II. The claims in this account have not been independently verified.
2026/01/17Iranian Lawyer Pleads: “Help Us Before We’re Cut Off Again”
Attorney Samin Cheraghi wrote an urgent appeal warning that conditions inside Iran are “more terrifying and catastrophic” than what is visible in published footage, repeating: “Help us, help us… before we’re cut off again.” The message reflects a broader wave of accounts saying the images seen so far cannot convey the scale of what people claim they witnessed, alongside allegations that authorities are suppressing information and pushing counter-narratives to obscure the reality on the ground.
2026/01/17Message: At Least Three Medical Staff Reportedly Killed in Kermanshah
A message from someone who says they work in Kermanshah province emergency services claims that several hospital medical workers were targeted and that they are aware of the deaths of three healthcare colleagues in Kermanshah. The source says emergency staff and doctors have suffered serious psychological trauma while treating large numbers of wounded and registering deaths. The same account adds that, based on incoming reports, some doctors and nurses have been detained and that authorities have restricted or blocked Instagram pages of physicians who said they were treating injured protesters for free. These claims have not been independently verified.
2026/01/17Civil Activist Parastoo Jamalzai Reportedly Re-Arrested at Arak Checkpoint
Reports say Parastoo Jamalzai , a 32-year-old civil activist from Arak, was arrested on Wednesday by IRGC intelligence at the entrance to Arak while traveling from Tehran, in what sources describe as a detention linked directly to the latest protests. The account says authorities have set up checkpoints at city entrances and are detaining people they deem suspicious. Jamalzai has previously faced repeated security pressure: she was detained during the “12-day war” and later released on 500 million tomans' bail, after which new cases were opened against her. A criminal court reportedly issued fines totaling 70 million tomans on charges including “spreading falsehoods” and “publishing obscene images,” later suspended for two years ; a separate Revolutionary Court case for “propaganda against the Islamic Republic” has reportedly been heard but not yet ruled. Sources also say her Instagram page—previously with around 21,000 followers —is now under security control.
2026/01/17Report: Lahijan Protester Mehran Rafiei Killed on Jan. 8
Local accounts say Mehran Rafiei , a barber from Lahijan , was killed on Thursday, January 8, 2026 (18 Dey 1404) during street protests near Enghelab Square . Rafiei, originally from the village of Zamidan , is described as an ordinary citizen who was participating in demonstrations when he died, in what sources portray as part of the violent crackdown on protesters.
2026/01/17New Karaj Protest Footage Emerges From Jan. 8–9
Newly received images and videos described as Karaj protests on 18–19 Dey 1404 (January 8–9, 2026) show crowds in the streets during the peak protest period. The material is being circulated as additional visual documentation of the unrest and crackdown in Karaj, though the exact locations, timing by day, and identities of those shown cannot be independently verified from the footage alone.
2026/01/17Mashhad Chant: “Ball, Tank, Fireworks—Khamenei…” in New Jan. 8 Video
Newly shared videos described as Mashhad, 18 Dey 1404 (January 8, 2026) show protesters chanting a slogan that includes “Ball, tank, fireworks, Khamenei…,” circulating as fresh footage from the city during the unrest. The clip adds to the growing stream of visual material from those days, though the exact location and context within Mashhad cannot be independently verified from the video alone.
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