Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR)
We are deeply concerned about the killing, torture, and ill-treatment of detained protesters in Iran. While we mourn the loss of thousands of lives and are gravely anxious about the situation of many detainees, and while we continue to insist on the right to access justice and the necessity of accountability, we wish to emphasize that, in the absence of information transparency and effective pressure on the military, security, and judicial institutions, grave and widespread human rights violations are continuing, and are even intensifying.
Evidence indicates the use of physical and psychological torture, beatings, sexual violence, and forced confessions, as well as the creation of fear and the threat of execution against detainees. Those arrested are being held without visits, deprived of access to independent legal counsel, denied the right to contact their families, and subjected to systematic violations of their fundamental human rights.
We warn that, in the absence of an immediate and decisive response, the scope and intensity of these abuses may lead to an unprecedented escalation of torture and the organized killing of prisoners. The lack of effective protective mechanisms has also placed prisoners’ families at risk of threats, intimidation, and coercion into silence.
At the very time of drafting this letter, we learned that today, twelve people have been executed in Iran. According to reports, these executions were carried out on charges of murder and drug trafficking. However, the intention to spread fear through this action is evident, and it also serves as a warning in line with a well-known pattern: first ordinary prisoners, and then protesters.
Within this framework, we stress the urgent need for swift and tangible action. Given the scale of repression and the immediate risks, including the threat of execution, we expect the institution under your authority to take decisive action by activating international accountability mechanisms and applying sustained diplomatic pressure.
We also call on you to make the necessary arrangements for the deployment and visitation of independent human rights organizations, including Amnesty International, the International Committee of the Red Cross, and others, to Iran and its prisons.
We urgently call for efforts to initiate proceedings against the Islamic Republic of Iran on charges of crimes against humanity before the International Criminal Court. Furthermore, we demand the immediate and unconditional release of political and conscience prisoners, the annulment of death sentences, and guarantees of the fundamental rights of detainees.
Under conditions of disrupted communications, lack of transparency, and widespread neglect of prisoners’ situations, we warn that the repetition of past bloody tragedies in prisons is more likely than ever. With deep concern, yet with hope for effective action, we will closely follow your developments and measures aimed at reducing the scope of the crimes that are currently taking place.
Respectfully,
Political Executive Board of the Left Party of Iran
January 21, 2026
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