Iran’s national police chief has delivered a blunt and uncompromising warning to those involved in the ongoing unrest, giving protesters a strict deadline to surrender or face severe legal consequences. On Monday, Ahmad-Reza Radan announced that anyone who participated in what authorities have labelled as “riots” must present themselves to the authorities within 72 hours. Failure to do so, he warned, would result in the application of “the full force of the law,” according to reporting by AFP.
The wave of demonstrations is widely seen as the most serious challenge to the leadership of Iran in several years. The actual scale of violence remains difficult to verify, as the country has been under a near-total internet blackout that has now stretched into its eleventh day. Human rights organisations have alleged that the crackdown by security forces has been far more deadly than official accounts suggest. One Iranian official has claimed that at least 5,000 people may have been killed since the unrest began, a figure that sharply contrasts with government statements.
In his remarks, Radan attempted to differentiate between categories of demonstrators. He said that younger individuals who were drawn into the protests unintentionally would be viewed as having been misled rather than as enemies of the state. Speaking on state television, he described them as “deceived individuals” and said they would be shown leniency if they voluntarily surrendered within the specified three-day window.
At the same time, Iranian authorities have maintained that while the protests may have started peacefully, they were later hijacked and turned violent by hostile foreign actors. Officials have repeatedly accused external enemies—specifically the United States and Israel—of inciting unrest and exploiting domestic grievances to destabilise the country. In response to the situation, senior figures from Iran’s executive, legislative, and judicial branches issued a joint statement pledging continuous efforts to address the economic hardships that are believed to have triggered the protests.
However, this conciliatory tone was paired with strong warnings. The statement made clear that those accused of involvement in terrorism or organised violence would face decisive and harsh punishment. The document was signed by President Masoud Pezeshkian, parliament speaker Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, and judiciary chief Gholamhossein Mohseni Ejei.
Human rights advocates have strongly criticised the government’s actions. Mahmood Amiry-Moghaddam, co-founder and director of a rights monitoring group, said there was “no doubt that the Islamic Republic has committed one of the largest mass killings of protesters in our time,” underscoring growing international alarm over the situation.
There is also increasing concern that the Iranian authorities may resort to capital punishment as part of their response. On Monday, the United Nations warned that Iran appeared to be using executions as a means of intimidating the population. UN human rights chief Volker Türk said Iran carried out approximately 1,500 executions last year, making it second only to China in the number of people put to death.
Meanwhile, the scale of arrests remains contested. Iranian security officials cited by Tasnim News Agency have said around 3,000 people have been detained. In contrast, rights groups estimate the number of arrests could be as high as 20,000, pointing to a much broader sweep by security forces.
Adding to the hardline rhetoric, Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei has reportedly instructed authorities to “break the back of the seditionists,” according to state media. His remarks further signal the leadership’s determination to suppress the unrest decisively, even as domestic and international scrutiny continues to intensify.
