Doctors share disturbing details of Iran’s actions. world News
The clerics who rule Iran have successfully crushed a nationwide rebellion, restoring a climate of fear.
However, he matches his determination to stay in power with his efforts to conceal the events.
The latest update shows that Trump is threatening Tehran.
During the Iran Communication Blackout, which started on January 8, there has been some relief; sporadic internet use has now become possible.
But communicating with people inside the country remains difficult, requiring both courage and practical means to reach them.
activist doctor
Dr. Yasser Rahmani-Raad is determined to raise his voice. A specialist in internal medicine at a public hospital in Tehran, he told Sky News what he saw when the regime launched its crackdown in the capital.
“Pressure was being put on the nurses and doctors to vacate the emergency department. In other words, any patient who was there – whether they had clear medical indications or not – was asked to be discharged. They wanted the emergency ward to be vacated for the security forces who were injured.”
Dr Yasser Rahmani-Red
We know that members of Iranian security forces have infiltrated clinics and hospitals. Photos of one such operation inside Imam Khomeini Hospital in western Iran have been posted online.
We see staff members at the front entrance trying to stop them.
Colleagues informed Dr Rahmani-Raad about the consequences of the state’s actions.
“In some cases patients were removed from ventilators and other medical equipment. They said, ‘Let them die. They have no rights. They are against the Islamic system, and they deserve to die.'”
Medical workers also told the doctor that security officers targeted protesters with their weapons inside medical facilities.
“Some people were injured by firearms and (later) killed in the hospital with live ammunition… (protesters) who were shot with live bullets and were killed again inside the hospital with live ammunition.”
The photo shows an X-ray of an injured protester
Dr Rahmani-Raad says that as a result of state action, security forces now have effective control over hospitals.
They’ll arrest anyone who was hurt in the protests and went to the hospital, even if they went before the police found out. By checking their security cameras, they track them down, raid places, and detain them. That’s the situation we are in now.”
Iranian activists discuss the protests, stating, “The regime always lies.”
doctors are being targeted
Online reports have circulated about the targeting of doctors and medical professionals.
Human rights organisations have confirmed six cases of arrests or detentions of medical professionals for treating protesters so far.
Dr Rahmani-Raad confirmed the arrests of colleagues Ameneh Soleimani, Babak Pouramin, and Farhad Nadali.
One of these doctors is Dr Alireza Golchini, who posted on Instagram in early January that he would provide treatment to protesters.
Dr Ameneh Sulaimani is a dermatologist. Credit: Instagram
Dr Babak Pouramin. Credit: LinkedIn
Dr Farhad Nadali is a general surgeon
In recent days, human rights organisations have said security forces raided Dr. Golchini’s home and beat him before detaining him.
Now, Dr Golchini is reportedly facing a death sentence for charges of Moharebeh – known as waging war against God – according to the human rights organisation Hengaw.
How many people have died?
Iranian officials violently stopped protests, and a massive internet blackout was implemented from January 8 to 27.
This has obscured the real impact of the brutal actions, making it difficult to collect verified data on the number of people killed and injured during the rebellion.
The Islamic Republic of Iran has said that 3,117 people have been killed – claiming that the majority of these deaths were by security forces and civilians, not protesters.
Human rights agencies have cautioned that the actual numbers are significantly higher.
The Human Rights Activist News Agency (HRANA) has independently confirmed 6,301 deaths, while 17,091 cases are under review, bringing the total probable number to more than 23,000.
Read more:
Iran warns any attack would mean ‘total war’
‘He was bleeding and gasping for life for 40 minutes.’
Iran’s supreme leader is Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Photo: Reuters
Medical professionals also claim that the officials’ figure is very low.
Dr Rahmani-Raad and his network of doctors previously estimated that around 20,000 to 30,000 people had died and now believe it could be higher.
This number is reiterated by Dr Amir-Mobrez Parasta, a Germany-based eye surgeon and supporter of Reza Pahlavi, son of the former Shah of Iran.
They assert that since the protests began on January 23, hospitals and clinics across Iran have recorded at least 25,654 deaths. Of these, almost a third (8,354) were in Tehran alone.
Sky News contacted the Iranian Embassy to confirm these figures but did not receive a response.
The USS Abraham Lincoln (pictured) and several other ships are now in the area, raising fears of a US attack. Photo: Reuters
Dr Parasta says he has collected data on medically reported deaths linked to the protests by talking to medical professionals in hospitals and clinics across Iran. At least two individuals in each medical organisation verified the data, according to him.
Sky News has not seen these clinical reports and is unable to independently verify this data.
Demand for care from foreign doctors
Injured protesters who need medical care face a terrible dilemma. By seeking treatment at a clinic or hospital in Iran, they risk arrest and detention by authorities.
Instead, some people are turning to doctors working overseas.
Dr Panteha Rezaian is a cardiovascular specialist in California who has received many calls from protest participants or their family members.
“They were already shot. They couldn’t go to any hospital because they were afraid of being killed or arrested. So what? They are indoors. They have infections; some of them are still bleeding. Some of them have been shot inside the stomach.”
Bodies lie in body bags outside the Kahrizak Forensic Medical Center in Tehran. Image: via social media/ Reuters
Dr Rezaian told us about his most recent call.
“I have a very little boy who has been shot. The bullet struck the boy in both knees from a mere two meters away. And you can imagine he may never walk again.”
The operation is an extreme form of remote health care and the expert says she does what she can, but these are people who need immediate care.
“Many injured people are not going to hospital, and then what does that mean? So that means they are at risk of potentially dying in the next few days or a week.”
Sky News contacted Iranian officials with our findings and did not receive a response.
