An Iranian official told Reuters on Tuesday that about 2,000 people have been killed amid mass demonstrations, blaming “terrorists” for the deaths of civilians and security personnel.
The figure came as Western nations and the UN responded to emerging reports of protesters being killed en masse, and German Chancellor Friedrich Merz went so far as predicting the Islamic Republic’s demise.
The demonstrations across Iran began in late December over an economic crisis, but have come to include mass calls for the fall of the regime.
As of Tuesday, estimates of the death toll varied dramatically. The Norway-based organization Iran Human Rights (IHR) said it had confirmed 648 people killed during the protests, including nine minors, but warned the death toll was likely much higher — “according to some estimates, more than 6,000.”
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The Iran International news site, which is based in the UK and is critical of the Islamic Republic, claimed at least 12,000 people have been killed in recent days — far beyond any other report. The site claimed this is the estimate used internally by Iran’s own security authorities.
In its report, the opposition website said the killings were “fully organized,” and mostly carried out by the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) and Basij militia, on the direct order of supreme leader Ali Khamenei.
Iran International said it compiled and cross-referenced the information from multiple sources, including a source close to the Supreme National Security Council and the Iranian presidential office, as well as sources in the IRGC, witness accounts, and information from medical officials.
“This data was examined and verified through multiple stages and in accordance with strict professional standards before being announced,” it said.
Speaking to Al Jazeera on Tuesday, Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi defended the regime’s move to cut off internet access across the country last week, a blackout that is ongoing.
“The government was in dialogue with the protesters. The internet was cut only after we confronted terrorist operations and realized orders were coming from outside the country,” he said.
Iran has blamed “America and the Zionist regime,” referring to Israel, for the protests. The US has threatened military intervention, but has also backed the demonstrations as an organic opposition movement and said it favors diplomacy. Israel has similarly endorsed the protests, but otherwise kept a low profile amid the unrest while warning of a possible attack by Iran.
