TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi on Saturday dismissed US President Donald Trump's claim that 32,000 civilians have been killed during protests in Iran since last December.
He emphasized that Iran has released official data and demanded proof of Trump's higher figure.
Araghchi said Iran has fulfilled its promise to transparently disclose an official list documenting 3,117 people, including about 200 security personnel, who were victims of what he called "recent terrorist operations."
"if anyone disputes accuracy of our data, please share any evidence," he said on the X platform, as reported by Anadolu Agency.
On Friday, Trump stated that 32,000 people have been killed in Iran in a "relatively short period of time."
"You know, the people of Iran are a lot different than the leaders of Iran, and it's very, very, very sad situation," he said.
Disagreeing Over Numbers
Mai Sato, the UN special rapporteur on human rights in Iran, claims more than 20,000 civilians may have been killed, but information remains limited amid strict state internet filtering, six weeks after a nationwide communications blackout was imposed.
The US-based and funded HRANA says it has documented more than 7,000 deaths during the nationwide protests and is investigating nearly 12,000 more cases.
Sato was among 30 special rapporteurs and international human rights experts who signed a joint statement on Friday calling on Iranian authorities to fully disclose the fate and whereabouts of tens of thousands of people arrested, forcibly disappeared, or missing following the nationwide protests, and to halt all death sentences and related executions.
“The true scale of the violent crackdown on Iranian protesters remains impossible to determine at this point,” the experts said, as reported by Al Jazeera.
“The discrepancy between official figures and grassroots estimates only deepens the anguish of families searching for their loved ones and displays a profound disregard for human rights and accountability.”
The international experts added that “the vast majority of those detained or killed are ordinary people, including children, from all provinces and diverse ethnic and religious backgrounds, as well as Afghan nationals,” in addition to lawyers representing protesters, medical personnel treating the wounded, journalists and writers, artists, and human rights defenders.
Iranian state media has been accused of regularly broadcasting what experts say are “widely regarded as forced confessions.”
The latest incident occurred on Saturday, when the official Mizan news agency of the Iranian judiciary released footage from a court hearing for three men who said they regretted burning a motorcycle, a mosque, and a copy of the Quran in Tehran during the unrest.
On Saturday, some students in Tehran and across the country returned to university campuses for the first time, as authorities remained closed and held some classes and exams online following the protests.
At Tehran's Sharif University, one of the country's most prestigious, students clashed after two separate demonstrations. Videos circulating online showed students shouting "dishonourables" at a group of students from the Basij paramilitary group affiliated with the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), who responded with chants of support for the government.
The clashes come amid heightened security in Iranian schools and university dormitories. Teachers and schoolchildren in several cities near the capital went on strike last week to protest the killing of at least 230 children and teenagers, as well as the increased presence of security forces in classrooms.
Iran-US Tensions
A dispute over casualty figures has further exacerbated tensions between Iran and the United States.
Araghchi has also spoken to various US media outlets advocating for a "fair" deal with Washington on Iran's nuclear program.
The threat of war is growing in the country and potentially in the region, with Serbia on Saturday becoming the latest country to call on all its citizens to leave Iran immediately.
Earlier that day, Trump said he was "considering" a limited military strike to pressure Iran to reach a nuclear deal, without elaborating.
Iran and the US resumed nuclear talks earlier this month in Muscat, Oman, followed by another round of talks in Geneva on Tuesday under Omani mediation.
The diplomatic efforts come amid rising regional tensions, fueled by a massive US military buildup in the Persian Gulf and Iranian war games.
At the inaugural meeting of the Board of Peace in Washington on Thursday, Trump warned that the US would resort to military action against Iran "within 10 to 15 days" if talks fail.
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