Amnesty International: Iran Forces Have Tortured Child Protesters

Iran has been swept by protests since September
Iran has been swept by protests since September
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Amnesty International: Iran Forces Have Tortured Child Protesters

Iran has been swept by protests since September
Iran has been swept by protests since September

Iran’s intelligence and security forces have been committing horrific acts of torture, against child protesters as young as 12 to quell their involvement in nationwide protests, Amnesty International reported Thursday.

Such acts include beatings, flogging, electric shocks, rape and other sexual violence, it said.

Before releasing them, state agents often threatened children with prosecution on charges carrying the death penalty or with the arrest of their relatives if they complained, the report added.

Iran has been swept by protests since the death of a young Iranian Kurdish woman in the custody of the country's morality police last September.

Iranian authorities have admitted that the total number of people detained in connection with the protests was above 22,000. While they have not provided a breakdown of how many of those detained were children, state media reported that children comprised a significant portion of protesters.

“Iranian state agents have torn children away from their families and subjected them to unfathomable cruelties. It is abhorrent that officials have wielded such power in a criminal manner over vulnerable and frightened children,” said Diana Eltahawy, Amnesty International’s Deputy Regional Director for the Middle East and North Africa.

“The authorities must immediately release all children detained solely for peacefully protesting.”



Russian Attack Kills Two in City of Poltava, Ukrainian Officials Say

A view shows the site of a Russian drone strike, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Poltava, Ukraine July 3, 2025. Press service of the State Emergency Service of Ukraine in Poltava region/Handout via REUTERS
A view shows the site of a Russian drone strike, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Poltava, Ukraine July 3, 2025. Press service of the State Emergency Service of Ukraine in Poltava region/Handout via REUTERS
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Russian Attack Kills Two in City of Poltava, Ukrainian Officials Say

A view shows the site of a Russian drone strike, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Poltava, Ukraine July 3, 2025. Press service of the State Emergency Service of Ukraine in Poltava region/Handout via REUTERS
A view shows the site of a Russian drone strike, amid Russia's attack on Ukraine, in Poltava, Ukraine July 3, 2025. Press service of the State Emergency Service of Ukraine in Poltava region/Handout via REUTERS

A Russian attack on the city of Poltava in central Ukraine killed two people and damaged a military recruitment center, the Ukrainian military and regional officials said on Thursday.

Regional governor Volodymyr Kohut said 11 people were also wounded, while the military reported fires in the military recruitment building and in a nearby residential building, reported Reuters.

Photos from the scene posted by emergency services showed firefighters battling blazes as well as damaged buildings and cars.

Russia has stepped up drone and missile attacks on Ukraine in the last month, and has launched some of the biggest attacks since its full-scale invasion that began in February 2022.

The aerial assault followed a drone attack on Monday near a military recruitment center in the central city of Kryvyi Rih.

Civilians were wounded in Kryvyi Rih, the military said, adding that military personnel and civilian employees of the recruitment center had sheltered during the air alert.

Ukrainian officials, including President Volodymyr Zelenskiy, have underlined the urgency of assistance on air defense from allies to defend against such assaults.