The reports note that the Iranian terrorist regime’s seizure of the bodies targets both the identity and dignity of those killed, in an effort to prevent the publication of images and the holding of memorial ceremonies.
Iran’s nationwide protests against the Islamic dictatorship began in early January 2026 and reached their peak on January 8, 2026, following a broad call by Kurdish political parties for a general strike. After the strike, people took to the streets across various provinces of Kurdistan and other parts of Iran, and the Islamic Republic carried out a large-scale massacre.
Time magazine reported on Sunday, January 25, 2026, citing two senior officials at Iran’s Ministry of Health, that during the two days of January 8 and January 9, 2026, when the bloody crackdown by the government reached its height, “possibly up to 30,000 people” were killed on the streets of cities across Iran.
Time did not name the two officials, and due to severe censorship in the country and an internet shutdown now entering its third week, Radio Farda has not been able to independently verify the report.
Time also noted that no such massacre occurred even in Aleppo, Syria, or Fallujah, Iraq, where high death tolls over short periods resulted from heavy bombardments and massive explosions—not from gunfire.
Meanwhile, Amin Hossein Rahimi, Iran’s Minister of Justice, acknowledged the arrest of children under the age of 18 by security forces of the Islamic Republic and announced that some of them remain in detention for the purpose of “investigations.”
The ILNA news agency reported on Sunday, February 1, 2026, that Rahimi—who is also head of the Policy Council of the National Child Rights Authority—confirmed the continued detention of children aged 16 to 18.
Although he did not specify the number of detainees, he stated that “a small number of those arrested who are between 16 and 18 years old are being held in juvenile correction and rehabilitation centers; their cases require investigation, and they will be released soon after the completion of investigations and the provision of legal bail.”
