Raw anger and deep sorrow sweep Iran as number of dead gradually becomes known

Iranians living today are experiencing a mix of shock, grief and anger. The brutal suppression of the 8–9 January protests has left a mark on society unlike anything in recent memory, both in scale and in the fact that almost everyone feels it.

The exact death toll from the unrest remains unclear. The demonstrations, which began on 28 December in Tehran after the sharp collapse of the national currency, quickly spread to cities across the country. As quickly as that, protesters' demands moved from a solution to the economic crisis to calls for the fall of the ruling system.

Iranian officials announced a death toll of 3,117. Human rights organisations working on Iran say the real number is likely far higher.

The Norway-based Iran Human Rights organisation noted that "state sources consistently underreport the scale of their own atrocities. For example, over the past five years, the Islamic Republic has officially acknowledged only about 12 per cent of the executions it has carried out."

On Wednesday, the Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA), which tracks protest-related violence and executions in Iran, reported that it had verified 6,373 deaths. According to the organisation, the victims included 5,993 protesters, 113 children under the age of 18, 214 members of government forces, and 53 non-protesters or other civilians.

'War zones'

A protester who took part in the 8 January demonstration in Mashhad, a religious city home to the shrine of the eighth Shia Imam, described the area around the police station on Haft Tir Street as a battlefield.

The witness said police officers opened fire from the roof of the station using Kalashnikov rifles. "At first they fired into the air," he said. "But when people moved closer, they started shooting directly at them."

He said the scene changed within seconds. "It looked like a war zone. We had to lie down in the roadside ditches to avoid being hit," he said, adding that he saw at least five people shot and lying on the ground.

According to the eyewitness, two buildings near the police station were set on fire, and protesters tore down street signs bearing the names of senior religious and political figures.

Similar accounts from protests in Rasht and Isfahan were also reported to The New Arab. In Rasht, the capital of Gilan province, with a population of nearly 800,000, part of the city's traditional bazaar was set on fire. Protesters who fled the market to escape the flames were reportedly shot at directly.

Still 'dazed'

A witness to the killings, whose father's cousin was shot dead in Tehran, told The New Arab: "The scale of the tragedy is massive. I don't know how we are supposed to get back on our feet. Honestly, staying upright in these conditions takes a mind of steel."

The witness, who went with the victim's parents on 9 January to the Kahrizak morgue outside Tehran, said they spent two hours searching among the bodies before finding him.

"All of them were young. Every time we lifted the cover of a dead body, we saw the face of another young man," he described.

He said the number of bodies was so high that families who wanted to transport their loved ones to nearby cities such as Karaj or Pardis had to wait several days for an available ambulance.

Two days after finding the body, the family managed to bring it to Behesht-e Zahra, Tehran's main cemetery. But the crowds were so large that traffic leading into the cemetery stretched for hours. "We sat in that line for two hours just to get through the gates," he said.

"It's really hard to describe the state we're in," he added. "For the first couple of days after the killings, the whole city felt hollow and silent. Then a wave of deep disbelief took over. We're still dazed."

There are also reports of victims whose faces were damaged by gunfire and could not be recognised. Relatives identified some of the bodies based on clothing and shoes before their identities were confirmed through fingerprinting.

More than 20 days after the height of the clashes between protesters and security forces, some families still do not know what happened to their relatives. They have been unable to locate them among the dead or those detained, raising fears that authorities may be withholding bodies or that detainees have been tortured to force confessions.

Waiting for a miracle

Another resident of Tehran, whose brother was shot with pellet rounds in the northern city of Sari, said everyone is struggling to cope: "We have to be careful this grief doesn't knock us down. Otherwise, it won't be the regime that falls apart; it'll be us."

"We're deeply frustrated, hopeless, depressed. Some people keep telling us, 'Stay hopeful.' How are we supposed to stay hopeful? How many more people have to die?" he added.

The anguish and anger have become so widespread that, recently, reformist-leaning newspapers have begun publishing articles on anger-management techniques and medical advice for severe depression. The papers made no mention of why such guidance is suddenly being highlighted.

A 70-year-old woman, who did not take part in the protests and did not lose any relatives, described the days after the crackdown. "On the surface, everything looks normal," she said. "But everyone is in mourning. One of my friends keeps crying after seeing videos of children being killed. She can't even manage her daily life."

The woman, who lives in Tehran's Narmak district, said that as internet access is slowly restored, a sense of uncertainty hangs over the city. "Everyone is waiting," she added. "No one knows what for. Some are waiting for another round of protest, some for an American attack, and others for a miracle to save us from this regime."

Lately, officials' rhetoric has also shifted from threatening protesters at home to signalling readiness for war with the US, as Washington continues to build up military forces in the Gulf.