According to Amnesty International, the bodies of some victims have not been returned to their families.
Amnesty International says in its latest report that a large number of victims' bodies have not yet been returned to their families, and in some cases, security forces have moved the victims' bodies to unknown locations.
Amnesty International, in a statement on its Telegram channel, expressed its sympathy with the families of those killed in the recent protests in Iran and asked these families, activists, journalists, and all citizens who have information about the killing, arrest, or torture of protesters to send the organization any information, documents, videos, and images related to the recent protests and the victims.
The human rights organization intends to collect this information in order to hold Iranian officials accountable.
On Monday, December 25, Amnesty International released a report stating that, based on information obtained from inside Iran, the death toll from recent protests in Iran has reached 143, with almost all of them killed by firearms, including one person killed by tear gas and another person killed by beatings.
According to this organization, the number of deaths has been announced in Alborz Province: 9, East Azerbaijan Province: 1, Isfahan Province: 7, Fars Province: 15, Kerman Province: 1, Kermanshah Province: 34, Khuzestan: 40, Kurdistan: 12, Tehran: 20, and West Azerbaijan Province: 4.
This information is being released at a time when this human rights organization believes that the number of deaths in the recent protests that have taken place in various cities of Iran since November 14 following the increase in gasoline prices is much higher than this number, and it is continuing its investigation into the matter.
The report, referring to the treatment of the bodies of the victims of recent protests by security forces and authorities, states that in some cases, when the bodies of some of these victims were handed over to their families, the authorities have demanded payment from the families for various reasons, including "money for the bullet with which their loved ones were killed" and "compensation for properties destroyed in the protests."
Amnesty International also says that in some reports received by this human rights organization, authorities have stopped the treatment of the injured in hospitals and transferred them to detention centers, even though they needed medical care.
Previously, Raha Bahreini, Iran researcher at Amnesty International, told Voice of America: "Amnesty International calls on the United Nations, the European Union, and their member states to respond immediately and seriously to these deeply worrying developments and to call on the authorities to end this bloody crackdown and respect the right of Iranians to express their opinions and freedom of peaceful assembly."
However, Philip Luther, Amnesty International's Middle East and North Africa Research Director, criticized the response of the criminal community to the recent protests in various cities in Iran and stated that "the cautious and silent response of the international community to the unlawful killings of protesters is highly inappropriate and they must condemn these killings in the strongest terms."
US officials also reacted to the Islamic Republic's security forces' handling of protesters over the high price of gasoline and the publication of news that a number of protesters were killed and injured.
Previously, Brian Hook, the US special representative, also told VOA: "We have seen reports that dozens of innocent Iranians have been killed by the regime... The leader [Khamenei] is using the Revolutionary Guard to kill innocent Iranians."
Meanwhile, videos sent to Voice of America showed agents in Iran directly shooting people.
Last week, US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo said at a press conference in response to the crackdown on protesters in Iran that the United States was deeply concerned by reports of multiple deaths and that "the world is watching the Iranian regime's behavior."
He added that the United States is closely monitoring the ongoing protests in Iran; the United States strongly condemns any violent actions by the Iranian regime against the people of this country and is deeply concerned about reports received that several people have been killed.
The US Secretary of State added that the Islamic Republic must stop using violence against its people and immediately provide the right of all Iranians to free access to the internet.
On the other hand, a spokesman for the UN Human Rights Office has expressed deep concern over the use of live ammunition by security forces against protesters in Iran. On Tuesday, November 19, Rupert Colville, a spokesman for the UN Human Rights Office, expressed deep concern over the use of live ammunition by security forces in Iran against demonstrators, saying that according to reports, the number of deaths in these protests was in the dozens, and this level of casualties is "very serious."
The suppression of public protests in Iran continued while the government cut off the internet to prevent the spread of news of the crackdown, and reports indicated widespread arrests in various cities.
Source: Voice of America
