The Immediate Threat to the Lives of Tens of Thousands of Protesters at Risk of Torture, Enforced Disappearance, and Execution

The nationwide uprising of January 2026 in Iran was met with a bloody and organized crackdown by the ruling regime; a crackdown that led first to the killing of protesters in the streets and subsequently to a wave of widespread and collective arrests. This pattern of repression, which began with the lethal use of force and continued through arrests, torture, enforced disappearance, and other forms of inhuman treatment, has been recognized by international human rights bodies as part of serious and systematic human rights violations.

Within this context, Amnesty International described the year 2025 as a “year of shame” for the Iranian regime and warned about the extensive use of lethal force, mass arrests, torture, and forced confessions. This international assessment provides a legal framework for examining the arrests carried out during the January 2026 uprising as part of the same repressive policy.

This report specifically examines the widespread arrests carried out after the January 2026 uprising; arrests that followed the street killings and were carried out in practice to suppress protests, create sustained intimidation, and manufacture security cases through torture and forced confessions.

Scale of the Arrests

Based on credible available estimates, the number of individuals arrested during the January 2026 uprising is estimated at nearly 50,000. A significant proportion of those arrested were young people, students, and workers, many of whom were detained arbitrarily and without due legal process.

The scale of the arrests was such that in many areas, the capacity of prisons and official detention facilities was insufficient, forcing the ruling regime to resort to non-official sites for holding detainees.

Positions and Decisions of Senior Officials

Public and official statements by senior authorities provide important evidence of policymaking, awareness, and institutional coordination regarding widespread arrests and accelerated judicial processes.

Ali Khamenei, the leader of the clerical regime, repeatedly and publicly emphasized the need for harsh treatment of protesters. In the early days of the protests, he described protesters as “provoked individuals, rioters, and harmful elements” and stated:
“Talking to a rioter is pointless; a rioter must be put in their place.”

Gholamhossein Mohseni Ejei, the Head of the Judiciary, stated that dealing with protesters must occur without any leniency or tolerance, declaring:
“Sentences must be swift and decisive… anyone who deserves firm, swift, legal, and religious punishment must not be met with indulgence, hesitation, or delay.”

Ahmadreza Radan, the Commander-in-Chief of Iran’s Law Enforcement Forces, stated:
“Every day, our targeted arrests are increasing across the country.”

These statements frame arrests not as isolated actions but as a continuous, daily, and nationwide process. Taken together, and accompanied by directives to prosecutors and judges to rapidly process detainees and impose severe punishments, they indicate that arrests and subsequent proceedings were managed within a coordinated security-judicial framework that severely restricted fair trial guarantees.

Arbitrary Arrests and Due Process Violations

Available evidence indicates that in many cases arrests were carried out:

• without judicial warrants and without clear reasons being provided;
• through surprise raids and street arrests;
• accompanied by denial of contact with family members and access to legal counsel;
• and through security pressure and the attribution of broad and vague security-related charges instead of lawful procedures.

Overcrowding of Prisons and Use of Non-Official Detention Sites

The scale of the arrests led to the full saturation of prison and official detention capacities, prompting the clerical regime to use unconventional and non-official sites to hold detainees.

Case Study: Mashhad
During the January 2026 arrests in Mashhad, due to the complete overcrowding of Vakilabad Prison and security detention centers affiliated with the IRGC, reports indicate that three camps were converted into temporary detention facilities. Detainees were initially transferred to these camps and held under conditions of severe overcrowding. Available estimates indicate nearly 7,000 detainees in Mashhad alone. This pattern significantly increased the risk of ill-treatment, torture, and short-term enforced disappearance.

Enforced Disappearance and Detention in Undisclosed Locations

The pattern of holding detainees in undisclosed and unregistered locations, accompanied by families’ lack of information and denial of access to lawyers, aligns with concerns raised by international human rights bodies. Human rights organizations have warned that short-term enforced disappearance has been used as part of the repression apparatus, exposing detainees to severe risks of torture and ill-treatment.

Reports indicate:

• detention in unregistered and unofficial locations;
• contradictory responses or silence by authorities regarding detainees’ whereabouts;
• complete denial of contact with families and legal counsel.

In accordance with internationally accepted legal definitions, this pattern meets the criteria of enforced disappearance and places detainees at serious risk of torture and other forms of inhuman treatment.

Torture, Forced Confessions, and Coerced Signing of Blank Forms

Numerous reports of torture and forced confessions during the January 2026 arrests are consistent with warnings issued by international human rights bodies. Amnesty International has stated that confessions broadcast during this period constitute “propaganda” and form part of a process aimed at paving the way for severe sentences, including execution, following unfair trials. The organization has warned that thousands of detainees face the risk of torture, ill-treatment, sexual violence, and forced confessions; findings that reinforce this report’s documentation of systematic torture and coerced signing of blank forms.

1. Severe Physical Torture

Reports include punches, kicks, batons, and hard objects used against the head, face, back, abdomen, and limbs. In some cases, detainees were transferred with serious injuries such as ruptured eardrums, broken ribs, and internal bleeding.

2. Psychological Torture and Threats

Reports include threats of execution, mock executions, threats against family members, and pressure to confess to serious charges such as “enmity against God” or “corruption on earth.”

3. Sexual Violence and Threats

Multiple reports document threats of rape and sexual abuse, particularly against women and adolescent girls. Such acts constitute torture and cruel, inhuman, and degrading treatment.

4. Denial of Medical Care and Arrests from Medical Facilities

In numerous cases, injured protesters were arrested directly from medical facilities. Amnesty International has reported that security forces pressured hospitals to report gunshot and pellet wounds, after which injured individuals were arrested without completing medical treatment. This practice violated the right to health and placed detainees’ lives at serious risk, in some cases leading to severe deterioration or death in custody.

5. Forced Signing of Blank Forms

A recurring pattern involved forcing detainees to sign blank papers or pre-prepared statements, which were later used to fabricate cases and assign serious charges.

Documented Cases in Isfahan

Shervin Bagheryan Jebeli (aged 17–18)
He was reportedly arrested during the Isfahan protests and subjected to severe torture, forcing him to sign a blank paper later used as a confession for charges such as possession of Molotov cocktails or involvement in the killing of security forces. He is held in Ward “Alif-Ta” of the IRGC Intelligence unit at Dastgerd Prison and faces a serious risk of execution. His forced confessions were broadcast on state media.

Two Adolescent Girls (aged 16 and 18)
In early January 2026, videos of their forced confessions were broadcast by security-affiliated media outlets. They were accused of “leading riots,” receiving money from abroad, and encouraging destruction. Reports indicate these confessions were extracted under pressure and threats, constituting a clear violation of children’s rights.

Risk of Execution and Judicial Consequences

Amnesty International has warned that widespread arrests, forced confessions, and expedited trials during the crackdown on protests have significantly increased the risk of execution following unfair trials. These warnings align with documented evidence in this report, including the imposition of severe security charges and reliance on confessions obtained under torture, indicating that the lives of many detainees are under direct threat.

Pressure on Families and Excessive Bail

The clerical regime has used extremely high bail amounts as a tool of economic pressure. In parallel, families have been threatened into silence and obstructed from pursuing information about detainees’ conditions. These practices have effectively turned arrest into a form of collective punishment.

Reports also indicate that security forces compelled hospitals to report gunshot and pellet wounds and subsequently arrested injured individuals directly, demonstrating the use of the healthcare system as a mechanism for identification and repression.

Legal Assessment

The patterns documented in this report, including widespread and collective arrests, enforced disappearance, torture, forced confessions, denial of medical care, and pressure on families, are in serious conflict with Iran’s international obligations relating to:

• the prohibition of arbitrary detention and the right to a fair trial;
• the prohibition of torture and inhuman treatment;
• the protection of children’s rights.

Taken together, these actions, within the context of the January 2026 uprising, require thorough and independent international investigation.

Conclusion and Request to the Fact-Finding Mission

This report demonstrates that the January 2026 arrests in Iran were carried out on a nationwide scale with the explicit support of senior officials of the clerical regime and followed identifiable patterns including prison overcrowding, use of non-official detention sites, enforced disappearance, torture, forced confessions, and pressure on families. Accordingly, the Fact-Finding Mission is urged to:

• demand unhindered access to official and unofficial detention facilities;
• ensure secure and confidential interviews with detainees, former detainees, and their families;
• pursue protective measures for witnesses and families against threats and reprisals.