Protests in Iran Result in Hundreds of Deaths, Including Referee and Student

Mon Jan 12 2026 18:18:02 GMT+0200 (Eastern European Standard Time)

As anti-government protests escalate across Iran, a referee and a student are among the many casualties, with reports indicating nearly 500 deaths since the protests began two weeks ago.

Massive protests in Iran against the government have led to a reported death toll of nearly 500, including a young futsal referee and a student. The protests, which have spread across the country over economic grievances, have faced a brutal crackdown, resulting in further casualties and widespread arrests. Eyewitness accounts paint a grim picture of the situation amid an ongoing media blackout.

A referee and a student are among hundreds of people reportedly killed during massive anti-government protests in Iran.

Coach Amir Mohammad Koohkan, 26, was hit by live ammunition on 3 January during protests in the town of Neyriz, his friend told BBC Persian. Everyone knew him for his kindness, they said, adding his family is grieving and angry because he was killed by the regime.

Five days later, student Rubina Aminian, 23, was shot from behind during a protest in Tehran, according to human rights groups. She fought for things she knew were right, her uncle told CNN.

Nearly 500 protesters and 48 security personnel have been killed in two weeks of protests, a US-based rights group says.

Sources in Iran have told the BBC the death toll is likely higher than reported.

Demonstrations began on 28 December over the economy in the capital Tehran and have spread to 186 cities and all 31 provinces, according to the Human Rights Activist News Agency (HRANA).

The protests have grown into the largest in years, with calls for an end to the Islamic Republic and rule of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

The protests led to a government crackdown, with at least 10,600 people reportedly arrested and 496 protesters killed, according to HRANA.

Medical staff in Iran have described hospitals overwhelmed with dead and injured patients. BBC Persian verified that 70 bodies were brought to Poursina Hospital in Rasht city on 9 January, and the BBC counted 180 body bags in footage from one morgue near Tehran thought to have been filmed on the same night.

The BBC and most other international news organisations are unable to report from inside Iran, and the Iranian government has imposed an internet shutdown since Thursday, making obtaining and verifying information difficult.

Among the protest victims was Koohkan, who was killed in Neyriz in south-west Fars Province. His friend did not witness the incident firsthand but heard from eyewitnesses at the scene.

It was far too soon for him, really far too soon. He was so young, the friend said.

Aminian, a Kurdish student, was shot from behind while participating in a protest. Rights groups reported differing accounts of where she was struck, but all assert that government forces were responsible for her death.

The family had to search through hundreds of bodies of young people killed in the protests at a location close to her college, amid allegations that Iranian authorities delayed her burial and denied the family mourning ceremonies.

As these protests echo the discontent seen during previous uprisings, Iranian leaders have characterized the demonstrators as 'troublemakers,' while international responses vary, including potential military options considered by the US.