To: Mr Volker Türk, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR)

We, the undersigned, urgently call on the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights to take immediate, escalated action in response to the mass killing of protesters in Iran and the coordinated attempt to conceal atrocities through nationwide communications shutdowns.

Credible reporting indicates a large-scale, organised crackdown over two consecutive nights, 8 and 9 January 2026, during an ongoing internet shutdown. Iran International has reported that at least 35,000 people were killed, citing senior government and security sources and describing a multi-stage verification process based on accounts linked to state bodies, medical data, eyewitness testimony, and information from doctors and nurses across multiple cities.

We recognise that confirming casualty figures is extremely difficult in the context of repression, intimidation of witnesses, and restricted access to information. Your own office has stated that reports indicate hundreds have been killed and thousands arrested, and has highlighted that nationwide internet and telecommunications shutdowns obstruct independent monitoring and verification.

Regardless of the final verified toll, the pattern is clear: peaceful demonstrators are being met with lethal force, hospitals are reportedly overwhelmed, and the risk of further bloodshed is acute. OHCHR has already called for an immediate end to violent repression, restoration of full internet and telecommunications access, and accountability for serious violations. 
We ask you to escalate these actions now, commensurate with the scale and urgency of the crisis.

We call on OHCHR to take the following actions immediately

1. Demand an immediate halt to live fire and lethal crowd-control tactics, and publicly insist on the protection of peaceful assembly and expression, including protection of children, medical staff, and journalists.
2. Press for the urgent restoration of full internet and telecommunications access nationwide, because communications blackouts enable abuses and prevent documentation and lifesaving services.
3. Trigger emergency UN action by urging a rapid international response through the UN Human Rights Council, including an emergency session focused on stopping killings, securing evidence, and preventing reprisals against families of victims and witnesses.
4. Strengthen independent investigations and evidence preservation, including coordination with existing UN mandates and mechanisms on Iran, and the rapid establishment of secure channels for submission of documentation (videos, hospital records, morgue data, testimonies) with witness protection safeguards.
5. Call for immediate safeguards for detainees, including access to lawyers, medical care, and protection from torture and enforced disappearance, and urge a moratorium on executions and expedited proceedings against protesters, which your office has already flagged as a grave concern.
6. Publish clear benchmarks and time-bound reporting, including public updates on steps taken, cooperation requested from Iranian authorities, and international follow-up pathways for accountability.

Why this matters now
Iran International has described the January 8 to 9 crackdown as a nationwide killing carried out in the darkness of an internet shutdown, and has called for documentation from families and witnesses so that victims’ names are preserved and evidence is not lost. 
OHCHR has warned that the cycle of violence cannot continue and that killings must be investigated and those responsible held to account. 

Delays cost lives, and evidence disappears quickly under intimidation and blackout conditions.

Our request
High Commissioner Türk, we ask you to use your mandate and the full weight of the United Nations human rights system to stop further killings, restore communications, protect detainees and medical services, and ensure independent investigations that preserve evidence for future prosecutions.

Please act now, publicly and urgently.

Sources referenced in this petition:

1. Iran International report on at least 12,000 killed during the January 8 to 9, 2026 crackdown amid internet shutdown
2. OHCHR press release (13 January 2026) calling for an end to violent repression, restoration of communications, and accountability