Iranian authorities have continued to arrest citizens following the brutal crackdown on nationwide protests. The arrests have been ongoing for several weeks since the Iranian regime suppressed protests demanding an end to clerical rule last month.
According to the Associated Press, friends of Nusha and Mona reported to the AP that they were arrested from their homes in the early hours of January 16 on charges of participating in the nationwide protests in Iran. The informant requested anonymity for safety reasons.
At 2 a.m. that day, six police cars arrived outside the Nakhii residence. The knocking of security personnel woke the Nakhii sisters Nusha and Mona from their sleep. They were forced to surrender their phone passwords and then taken away from their home.
Reports of raids on residences and workplaces by security personnel have been coming from various locations, indicating that this crackdown has swept across all sectors of Iranian society, including university students, doctors, lawyers, teachers, actors, business owners, athletes, and filmmakers. Even reformists closely associated with President Masoud Pezeshkian have not been spared.
According to activists monitoring the arrests, those detained are often held in isolation for several days to weeks, prohibited from contacting family or lawyers, leaving desperate relatives searching for them.
The US-based Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA) reported that the number of arrests has exceeded 50,000. Due to internet shutdowns by Iranian authorities, accurate statistics are challenging to obtain, and the actual number of detainees is likely higher.
Other human rights groups outside Iran are also documenting this wave of crackdowns. Shiva Nazarahari, an organizer from the Committee to Monitor the Arrested Protesters’ Conditions (CMSDP), stated: “Authorities continue to target and arrest individuals.”
The committee has received information on over 2,200 detainees through direct reports from families and local networks. Among the verified detainees are 107 university students, 82 minors as young as 13, 19 lawyers, and 106 doctors.
Nazarahari pointed out that authorities are monitoring municipal surveillance cameras, store monitors, and drone footage to track protesters and apprehend them at their residences or workplaces.
The nationwide protests in Iran erupted in late December last year due to skyrocketing prices leading to widespread discontent, quickly spreading across the country. The peak of protests occurred on January 8 and 9 when hundreds of thousands of people took to the streets in over 190 cities and towns nationwide.
The protests faced unprecedented violent repression by authorities. According to the Human Rights Activists News Agency, the death toll has surpassed 7,000 individuals so far, with the actual figures believed to be much higher.
A protester from the Gohardasht suburb of Tehran told the AP, “The arrest campaign is extremely widespread, as if they want to suffocate the entire society.”
Several of his relatives, three brothers, friends, and numerous neighbors were killed in the early days of the crackdown. To avoid being targeted by authorities, he requested anonymity.
Nusha, 37, and Mona, 25, were initially detained at Tehran’s infamous Evin Prison, where they were allowed contact with their parents, as reported by friends. Later, they were transferred to the Qarchak Women’s Prison on the outskirts of Tehran, which human rights organizations previously revealed to have overcrowding and poor sanitary conditions.
The “Committee to Monitor the Arrested Protesters’ Conditions” has lost contact with other detainees once they were imprisoned. Abolfazl Jazbi, 31, arrested on January 15 in the southern city of Isfahan, has not been heard of since then by his family. Jazbi suffers from a severe blood disorder and requires continuous medication.
Dadba, an Iranian lawyers’ group documenting cases of detained protesters, revealed that Attila Sultanpour, 45, was taken from his home in Tehran on January 29 and remains missing. Sultanpour was subjected to violent beatings during his arrest.
Musa Barzin, a lawyer from Dadba, cited reports from families indicating that authorities are freezing bank accounts, blocking SIM cards, and confiscating property of protesters’ relatives or public supporters.
Barzin stated, “The destruction of the law has reached an unprecedented level.”
Despite ongoing repression of protesters by Iranian authorities, numerous civil groups continue to issue statements of resistance.
The Iranian Writers Association, an independent group with a long dissent tradition, described the protests as a rebellion against “47 years of systemic corruption and discrimination” in a statement.
The association also announced that two members, including a secretary, had been detained.
A nationwide committee representing school teachers urged families to speak out for children and students who have been detained. The committee stated, “Do not fear the threats of security forces. Seek assistance from independent lawyers. Publicize the names of your children.”
Mohammad Habibi, a committee spokesperson, reported last Sunday (8th) that at least 200 children have died in the crackdown, increasing the number by dozens from recent statistics.
Habibi wrote on social media, “Every day we tell ourselves this is the final list, but the next morning, new names appear.”
Bar associations and medical groups have also spoken out, including Iran’s officially recognized Medical Council, which called for an end to harassment of healthcare workers by authorities.
The public’s anger over the authorities’ brutal crack down has now combined with dissatisfaction over economic hardships—decades of corruption and mismanagement, along with severe economic sanctions, have drained Iran’s economy, leading to a plummeting currency value and historic high inflation.
Despite the Iranian government announcing new measures, such as launching a new voucher program for essential goods, the crisis continues to worsen. Labor and trade groups, including the National Retiree Association, have issued statements condemning the current economic and political crisis.
Meanwhile, President Trump announced intentions to deploy a second aircraft carrier to the Middle East. Trump had previously warned Iranian authorities that severe action would be taken if they executed protesters.
Barzin highlighted that the severity of the crackdown on protesters underscores the fear of the Iranian regime of being overthrown.