Khamenei reportedly ordered ‘shoot to kill’ crackdown as Iran opposition groups say 30,000 killed in two days

Iranian Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei ordered the Supreme National Security Council on Jan. 9 to suppress the protests in Iran “by all necessary means,” according to a report published today (Sunday) by The New York Times, citing senior Iranian officials. The same sources reported that security forces were dispatched with orders to “shoot to kill” and show no mercy.

Meanwhile, data released early this morning exposed the scale of the massacre being carried out by the Iranian regime against protesters, pointing to a vast gap between Tehran’s official reports and the reality on the ground.

The human rights organization HRANA, which operates from the United States and monitors developments in the Islamic Republic, published an updated report aimed at shedding light on the deadly cost of suppressing the protests.

According to the organization’s data, the number of confirmed deaths stands at 5,459 people, the overwhelming majority of whom are protesters. However, this represents only the tip of the iceberg: the organization notes that more than 17,000 additional deaths are currently under investigation.

Taking all data into account, HRANA estimates that the total number of deaths linked to the suppression of the unrest stands at approximately 22,490 people.

Beyond HRANA’s figures, testimonies emerging from Iran’s medical system paint an even more harrowing picture. Two senior officials in Iran’s Ministry of Health, who spoke with Time magazine, said that based on data collected by doctors and first responders on the ground (and analyzed by an Iranian physician in exile), more than 30,000 people were killed in just two days – Jan. 8 and 9.

The UK-based opposition channel Iran International reported an even higher death toll of 36,500 over those two days. The channel’s figures are based on classified documents that came into its possession and on-field testimonies, including accounts from medical staff, eyewitnesses, and victims’ families.

At the same time, the British newspaper Daily Mail published figures from another Iranian doctor in exile, who estimated that the total number of deaths throughout the entire period of protests exceeds 33,000. The data also revealed the extent of injuries: according to estimates, nearly 100,000 people were wounded, with an especially horrifying statistic indicating that 30% suffered direct eye injuries – evidence of deliberate targeting of protesters’ faces by security forces.

In contrast to the soaring figures reported by human rights organizations and medical testimonies, the Iranian regime continues its policy of denial and minimization. According to Tehran’s official figures, only 3,117 deaths resulted from what it refers to as “the riots” – a number that represents only a fraction of independent estimates. The enormous discrepancies in the data point to a systematic effort by the authorities to conceal the scale of violent repression against civilians.