Two people confirmed dead as Iran protests turn into ‘battlefield’ | Iran
The biggest protests in Iran in three years entered their fifth day on Thursday, following reports of deadly clashes between protesters and security forces. State-run media confirmed that at least two people were killed.
Although state media did not disclose the identities of those killed, eyewitnesses and videos circulating on social media showed protesters lying motionless on the ground after security forces opened fire.
The Guardian also obtained photographs of two bodies bearing pellet and gunshot wounds, but the circumstances surrounding the images could not be independently verified.
The Oslo-based Hengaw Human Rights Organization said one of the dead was shot with a live bullet and died before being taken to a medical facility.
The two deaths were reported to have occurred in the southwestern city of Lordegan.
Activists and human rights groups warned of an escalating backlash against the protests and said a brutal crackdown was ongoing as security forces continued to open fire directly on protesters. In a message passed to the Guardian, an eyewitness said: “This is a war zone and they [security forces] “They are shooting mercilessly.”
Iranian wrestler Ebrahim Eshaghi, who lives in Germany, comes from the city of Lordegan and is in contact with the protesters on the field, said: “Today, the people of my city took to the streets to demand their rights. So far, two young people have been killed and many more have been injured. We ask the people of the whole world to have a voice. The Islamic Republic is the enemy of all of us.”
Video footage shared on social media showed security forces opening fire on protesters as crowds ran through smoke-filled streets and the injured were apparently carried away.’
The protests, initially sparked by the collapse of the national currency, began Sunday in the capital Tehran but have since spread to cities across the country; demonstrators chanted slogans for economic justice and demanded an end to the regime.
Roya Boroumand, executive director of the Abdorrahman Buroumand Center for Human Rights in Iran, said the protests were motivated by the decline in the value of the currency and its impact on the cost of living.
“Iranians are living below the poverty line in increasing numbers and have no hope.” [of] any significant improvement in living conditions. They are angry at the state’s mismanagement, corruption, and policies that cause misery within the country. The state considers any anti-government protest illegal, and the law does not actually make room for legal protest. “So we see a pattern of popular outbursts and deadly crackdowns.”
The protests come after a year that saw a record number of executions in Iran. 1,500 people executed in 2025 – The highest figure since 1989. Human rights groups say Iranian authorities use the death penalty to instill fear among the population and crush dissent.
“The executions are carried out after grossly unfair trials held behind closed doors, amid widespread torture and forced confessions,” said Hussein Baoumi, Amnesty International’s Director.
