Iran protests: Videos show intensifying crackdown and brutal tactics used on protesters
Human rights groups have warned of Iranian security forces’ escalating response to demonstrations in the western province of Kurdistan.
Clips from the regional capital Sanandaj appear to show security forces firing weapons in residential neighbourhoods and large groups of anti-riot police moving around the city.
The city was one of the first to see demonstrations following the death of 22-year-old Kurdish woman Mahsa Amini after she was in the hands of security forces.
With internet disruption reported across Iran and reports of local journalists being arrested for covering the demonstrations, information about the situation on the ground is scarce.
But footage from across the country is surfacing online. One widely-condemned video showed a police officer sexually assaulting a female protester while trying to arrest her in Tehran’s Argentina Square.
A voice in the video can be heard saying: “Oh they have arrested her, it is a girl. Please let her go. Why no one goes to her rescue?”
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
A new video has emerged online showing a police officer sexually assaulting a female protester while trying to arrest her in Tehran’s Argentina Square.
With reports of escalating tactics in Kurdistan province, Sky News has analysed footage emerging from the region’s capital.
This video was shared on Monday by Norway-based group Hengaw, which monitors human rights violations in Iran’s Kurdistan province. They say it was captured in Naysar, which is a northern suburb of Sanandaj.
Sky News has not been able to independently verify the video. Although reverse image searches of the video’s key frames confirm that the video is recent.
In it, at least six members of the Iranian security forces can be seen firing weapons in a residential neighbourhood.
The sound made when reloading indicates the weapons being fired are shotguns, according to analysts at the UK-based weapons research group, the Omega Research Foundation.
And while it’s possible that they are using rubber bullets, they say it’s more likely that they are shotgun pellets.
It’s difficult to make out the direction of fire, but Hengaw say that officers in the video were firing directly at homes.
Amnesty International has also said that it’s received reports of officers firing tear gas at people’s homes.
Another video shared by Hengaw last weekend shows used canisters and cartridges.
The person recording the video says they were used to “suppress the people” and ends the video by saying “death to Khameini”.
According to analysts at the Omega Research Foundation, those casings on the left and in the centre are shotgun cartridges.
The metal canisters on the top right would have contained CS gas – also known as tear gas.
The Omega Research Foundation says that the disused cartridges in the videos are similar to others found in other cities in Iran.
“While each require further verification, all evidence in combination points to the use of live fire against protesters,” it said.
But human rights groups say this is all just the tip of the iceberg.
“We are entering a sensitive phase of the demonstrations and confrontations. The regime is using more and more force to repress the protests. And we’ve seen that in Sanandaj, Kurdistan but also in small towns in the region,” said Taimor Aliassi, United Nations representative for the Association of Human Rights in Kurdistan of Iran.
“They’re now using new arms against protesters that we haven’t seen before [in the protests]” he told Sky News.
Other videos reportedly from Sanandaj demonstrate chaotic scenes on the ground.
In this video, at least 14 motorbikes driven by members of the security forces drive through the city.
Many of the bikes are carrying two officers, with those on the back equipped with weaponry. Shots can be heard throughout the video, and protesters can be seen throwing rocks at the officers as they pass.
Hengaw say that it’s not unusual for officers to travel on motorbikes in Iran, but it’s rare to see so many together at one time.
Other footage shared by the group demonstrates the scale of the security force’s presence in the city.
This video, which they say was captured on Thursday, shows a convoy made up of at least 14 vehicles including cars, motorbikes and trucks carrying security forces.
Those visible appear to be wearing the uniform of Iran’s anti-riot police.
However, Hengaw warn that officers from the military Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) have been reported as operating in the region wearing police and riot police uniforms in recent days.
It’s therefore difficult to discern exactly which units are part of the convoy depicted.
“All sorts of security forces, both plain cloth and uniform, have been transferred to Sanandaj,” he told Sky News.
“We see photos taken by residents showing security forces stationed every five metres on the street. It’s really quite a militarised situation.”
The Data and Forensics team is a multi-skilled unit dedicated to providing transparent journalism from Sky News. We gather, analyse and visualise data to tell data-driven stories. We combine traditional reporting skills with advanced analysis of satellite images, social media and other open source information. Through multimedia storytelling we aim to better explain the world while also showing how our journalism is done.
We see the boat from a distance – the orange of the life jackets reflected in the rising sun.
And as we draw closer, we can make out dozens of people crowded on board as it sets off from the shore, from a beach near Dunkirk.
.
There is no sign of any police activity on the shore, and there are no police vessels in the water.
Instead, the migrants crammed into an inflatable dinghy are being watched by us, on board a private boat, and the looming figure of the Minck, a French search and rescue ship that soon arrives.
Minck, a French search and rescue ship, shadows the boat
The dinghy meanders. It’s not heading towards Britain but rather hugging the coast.
A few of the passengers wave at us cheerfully, but then the boat starts to head back towards the shore.
As it nears a different beach, we see a police vehicle – a dune buggy – heading down to meet it.
Normal practice is for French police officers to slice through the material of any of these small boats that end up back on shore.
Sky’s Adam Parsons at the scene
Two police officers get out of the buggy and wait. A police helicopter arrives and circles above, performing a tight circle over the heads of the migrants.
The police think they might be about to go back on to the beach; in fact, these passengers know that most of them are staying put.
The boat stops a short distance from the shore and four people jump out. As they wade towards the beach, the boat turns and starts to head back out to sea.
We see the two police officers approach these four men and have a brief conversation.
Listen to The World with Richard Engel and Yalda Hakim every Wednesday
They don’t appear to check the bags they are carrying and, if they do question them about why they left the boat, it is the most cursory of conversations.
In reality, these people probably don’t speak French but they were almost certainly involved in arranging this crossing, which is against the law. But all four walk away, disappearing into the dunes at the back of the beach.
Read more:
Why do so many try to cross the Channel?
Channel crossings rise by 50% in first half of 2025
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
Why do migrants want to come to the UK?
We follow the boat as it chugs off in the direction of Britain, carrying around 50 people.
The Minck returns to shadowing its progress, but its job is limited to offering help if the boat gets into trouble.
Otherwise, if the engine keeps working, then this flimsy vessel will reach British waters in a few hours’ time.
World
IDF chief says conditions ‘created’ for Gaza ceasefire – as Trump says it could be ‘this week or next’
Donald Trump and a leading figure in the Israeli army have suggested a ceasefire in Gaza could be close.
Eyal Zamir, chief of staff of the Israel Defence Forces (IDF), told Israeli media that “conditions were created to advance a deal” to bring about an end to the conflict in the coastal territory, and the release of hostages.
In a televised address, he said: “We have achieved many significant results, we have caused great damage to the governance and military capabilities of Hamas.
“Thanks to the operational power that we have demonstrated, the conditions have been created to advance a deal to release the hostages.”
‘This week, or next’
It comes as the US president hosts Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in Washington DC on a prolonged visit this week.
Mr Trump said his meetings with Mr Netanyahu were focused “on Gaza for the most part”.
He said: “I think we have a chance [of a ceasefire] this week, or next week.”
However, the US leader added: “Not definitely,” saying nothing was certain about the situation in Gaza.
Donald Trump speaks, as Pete Hegseth looks on, during a dinner with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.
Pic: Reuters
Benjamin Netanyahu speaks during a bilateral dinner with Donald Trump this week.
Pic: Reuters
Hamas reiterates ‘keenness’ to end fighting
Meanwhile, Hamas has repeated its message that it is committed to the negotiations but warned of a number of sticking points despite the positive noises from senior Israeli figures.
In a statement, the militant group said: “In its keenness to succeed in the ongoing efforts, the movement [Hamas] has shown the necessary flexibility and agreed to release 10 prisoners.
“The key points remain under negotiation, foremost among them: the flow of aid, the withdrawal of the occupation from the territories of the Gaza Strip, and the provision of real guarantees for a permanent ceasefire.”
Read more:
What is the possible Gaza ceasefire deal?
The man acting as backchannel for Hamas
‘One issue’ still to be resolved in ceasefire, Sky News understands
Mr Trump’s special envoy to the Middle East Steve Witkoff previously told a cabinet meeting that the anticipated ceasefire would last 60 days and involve the release of ten hostages and nine bodies.
A source close to the negotiations told Sky News that the hostage release would take place in two waves during the 60 days and was conditional on the ceasefire.
Listen to The World with Richard Engel and Yalda Hakim every Wednesday
Israeli strikes continue
It comes as Israeli attacks on Gaza continue.
According to hospital officials, at least 40 Palestinians were killed in the latest attacks on Gaza – including 10 people from the same family.
Nasser Hospital in the southern Gaza city of Khan Younis said the dead included 17 women and 10 children.
While the politicians talk, so many people come from around the world to try to get across the Channel on small boats. But why?
Why make such a perilous crossing to try to get to a country that seems to be getting increasingly hostile to asylum seekers?
As the British and French leaders meet, with small boats at the forefront of their agenda, we came to northern France to get some answers.
It is not a new question, but it is peppered with fresh relevance.
Over the course of a morning spent around a migrant camp in Dunkirk, we meet migrants from Gaza, Iraq, Eritrea, South Sudan, Sri Lanka and beyond.
Some are fearful, waving us away; some are happy to talk. Very few are comfortable to be filmed.
All but one man – who says he’s come to the wrong place and actually wants to claim asylum in Paris – are intent on reaching Britain.
They see the calm seas, feel the light winds – perfect conditions for small boat crossings.
John has come here from South Sudan. He tells me he’s now 18 years old. He left his war-torn home nation just before his 16th birthday. He feels that reaching Britain is his destiny.
“England is my dream country,” he says. “It has been my dream since I was at school. It’s the country that colonised us and when I get there, I will feel like I am home.
“In England, they can give me an opportunity to succeed or to do whatever I need to do in my life. I feel like I am an English child, who was born in Africa.”
‘England is my dream country,’ John tells Adam Parsons
He says he would like to make a career in England, either as a journalist or in human resources, and, like many others we meet, is at pains to insist he will work hard.
The boat crossing is waved away as little more than an inconvenience – a trifle compared with the previous hardships of his journey towards Britain.
We meet a group of men who have all travelled from Gaza, intent on starting new lives in Britain and then bringing their families over to join them.
One man, who left Gaza two years ago, tells me that his son has since been shot in the leg “but there is no hospital for him to go to”.
Next to him, a man called Abdullah says he entered Europe through Greece and stayed there for months on end, but was told the Greek authorities would never allow him to bring over his family.
Britain, he thinks, will be more accommodating. “Gaza is being destroyed – we need help,” he says.
Abdullah says ‘Gaza is being destroyed – we need help’
A man from Eritrea tells us he is escaping a failing country and has friends in Britain – he plans to become a bicycle courier in either London or Manchester.
He can’t stay in France, he says, because he doesn’t speak French. The English language is presented as a huge draw for many of the people we talk to, just as it had been during similar conversations over the course of many years.
I ask many of these people why they don’t want to stay in France, or another safe European country.
Some repeat that they cannot speak the language and feel ostracised. Another says that he tried, and failed, to get a residency permit in both France and Belgium.
But this is also, clearly, a flawed survey. Last year, five times as many people sought asylum in France as in Britain.
And French critics have long insisted that Britain, a country without a European-style ID card system, makes itself attractive to migrants who can “disappear”.
Read more:
Channel crossings rise 50% in first six months of 2025
French police forced to watch on as migrants attempt crossing
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
Migrant Channel crossings hit new record
A young man from Iraq, with absolutely perfect English, comes for a chat. He oozes confidence and a certain amount of mischief.
It has taken him only seven days to get from Iraq to Dunkirk; when I ask how he has made the trip so quickly, he shrugs. “Money talks”.
He looks around him. “Let me tell you – all of these people you see around you will be getting to Britain and the first job they get will be in the black market, so they won’t be paying any tax.
“Back in the day in Britain, they used to welcome immigrants very well, but these days I don’t think they want to, because there’s too many of them coming by boat. Every day it’s about seven or 800 people. That’s too many people.”
“But,” I ask, “if those people are a problem – then what makes you different? Aren’t you a problem too?”
He shakes his head emphatically. “I know that I’m a very good guy. And I won’t be a problem. I’ll only stay in Britain for a few years and then I’ll leave again.”
A man from Sri Lanka says he “will feel safe” when he gets to Britain; a tall, smiling man from Ethiopia echoes the sentiment: “We are not safe in our home country so we have come all this way,” he says. “We want to work, to be part of Britain.”
Emmanuel is another from South Sudan – thoughtful and eloquent. He left his country five years ago – “at the start of COVID” – and has not seen his children in all that time. His aim is to start a new life in Britain, and then to bring his family to join him.
He is a trained electrical engineer, but says he could also work as a lorry driver. He is adamant that Britain has a responsibility to the people of its former colony.
Listen to The World with Richard Engel and Yalda Hakim every Wednesday
“The British came to my country – colonising, killing, raping,” he said. “And we didn’t complain. We let it happen.
“I am not the problem. I won’t fight anyone; I want to work. And if I break the laws – if any immigrant breaks the laws – then fine, deport them.
“I know it won’t be easy – some people won’t like me, some people will. But England is my dream.”
-
Sports3 years ago‘Storybook stuff’: Inside the night Bryce Harper sent the Phillies to the World Series
-
Sports1 year agoStory injured on diving stop, exits Red Sox game
-
Sports2 years agoGame 1 of WS least-watched in recorded history
-
Sports2 years agoMLB Rank 2023: Ranking baseball’s top 100 players
-
Sports4 years ago
Team Europe easily wins 4th straight Laver Cup
-
Environment2 years agoJapan and South Korea have a lot at stake in a free and open South China Sea
-
Sports2 years agoButton battles heat exhaustion in NASCAR debut
-
Environment2 years agoGame-changing Lectric XPedition launched as affordable electric cargo bike