Untreated blood, a regime that leaves even the wounded alone

The Islamic Republic regime has banned prison doctors from treating and caring for those injured in the protests.

A new report by Iran Human Rights has presented a shocking picture of the brutal repression of protesters in the city of Shiraz and the inhumane conditions in Adelabad Central Prison, showing that the repressive apparatus has not only shot protesters, but has even prevented the wounded from being treated and has ordered the medical staff in the prison to: "They are not allowed to treat the injured until they bleed to death."

During the nationwide protests of January 1404, especially on January 7, a wave of arrests occurred in the Ma'ali Abad and Farhangian neighborhoods of Shiraz, with an estimated number of more than 1,000 people, many of whom were transferred to the unsuitable basements of Adel Abad Prison and affiliated detention centers.

The detainees include teenagers between the ages of 16 and 18, some of whom have been seriously injured, including reported cases of vision loss, spinal cord injuries, and severe gunshot wounds.

One of the shocking parts of the report is that security forces have ordered the prison health department to deny treatment to the wounded inside the prison, so that instead of receiving medical attention, those who have been wounded will bleed to death. It is worth noting that even one of the prison doctors, Dr. Jafarzadeh, has been arrested for insisting on treating the wounded.

This behavior is part of a clear violation of human rights and the right to immediate and humane treatment; a phenomenon that has previously been documented by independent reports on the refusal to provide medical care to political prisoners in Iran, and which they consider a clear violation of the right to life and human dignity.

The Iranian Human Rights Organization emphasizes that the official statistics published by the government are far lower than reality, and that the statistics of this human rights organization are still incomplete; however, media estimates have so far put the number of deaths at more than 20,000.

This significant difference in statistics, which has even been reflected in international reports, shows that the dimensions of repression and violence against protesters are much broader than what the government is announcing.

Following these reports and other human rights accounts of violence in Iran, the UN Human Rights Council will hold an emergency meeting on the situation in Iran to address the “alarming violence” against protesters, with the support of at least 21 member states.

This meeting seeks to focus global attention on systematic human rights violations and send a clear message to the Iranian government that repression and violence against citizens must stop.

Reports from other human rights organizations, such as Human Rights Watch, have also spoken of unprecedented mass killings of protesters across the country, but the internet shutdown and severe restrictions on access to information have further obscured the true dimensions of these crimes.

The report by the Iranian Human Rights Organization and international evidence indicate a crackdown on protesters and a gross violation of fundamental human rights. The refusal to provide medical treatment to the wounded is not only a callous indifference to human suffering, but has clearly become a tool for killing and silencing the voice of protest. The international community is now in a position where it must not only hear the reports, but also take practical action to respond and stop these violence.