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Iran arrested a prominent reformist spokesperson on Monday, deepening a crackdown on dissent following mass protests that posed one of the greatest challenges to Tehran since its inception, as international monitors report death tolls far exceeding official figures.
The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) arrested Javad Emam, spokesperson for the Reformist Front coalition, local media reported Monday. Emam was at least the fourth Reformist Front figure to be arrested.
The arrest followed Sunday's detention of three other Reformist Front figures, including Azar Mansouri, who has led the coalition since 2023 and served as an adviser to former reformist President Mohammad Khatami. After the protest movement began in December, Mansouri expressed support for the demonstrators.
Authorities also arrested Ebrahim Asgharzadeh, a former member of parliament, and Mohsen Aminzadeh, a former foreign affairs official.
The reformist camp largely backed incumbent President Masoud Pezeshkian in the 2024 presidential election.
Iranian authorities have acknowledged that 3,117 people were killed in the protests, publishing on Sunday a list of 2,986 names, most of whom they say were members of security forces and innocent bystanders.
The Iran Martyrs and Veterans Foundation, citing the Forensic Medicine Organization, said 2,427 of the dead were security forces and civilians killed by "armed terrorist groups."
No information was provided about the remaining 690 deaths.
International organizations have put the toll far higher.
The U.S.-based Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA) says it has verified 6,961 deaths, mostly protesters, and has another 11,630 cases under investigation. HRANA has also counted more than 51,000 arrests.
The agency, based in Virginia, continues to update its figures as it verifies additional cases, adding six more deaths to its count in recent days.
On Saturday, Iranian Nobel Peace Prize winner Narges Mohammadi was sentenced to six years in prison on charges of harming national security and an additional 18 months for "propaganda" against Iran's Islamic system, her foundation said.
Mohammadi was arrested in December before nationwide protests erupted later that month. Already incarcerated for much of the past decade for campaigning against Iran's use of capital punishment and mandatory dress code for women, she now faces 17 more years behind bars with the addition of these new sentences.
She also faces 154 lashes carried over from a previous sentencing.
Filmmaker Mehdi Mahmoudian, co-screenwriter of "It Was Just an Accident," winner of the Palme d'Or at Cannes in 2025, is among those detained.
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Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei called on Iranians to show "resolve" ahead of the 47th anniversary of the 1979 Islamic Revolution this week.
"Foreign powers have always sought to restore the previous situation," Khamenei said, referring to the period when Iran was under the rule of Shah Reza Pahlavi and dependent on the United States.
"National power is less about missiles and aircraft and more about the will and resolve of the people," Khamenei said. "Show it again and frustrate the enemy. If the enemy is not made hopeless, a nation will constantly be exposed to pressure and disturbance. The enemy's hope must be broken."
Iran has branded the protests as riots fueled by its arch-foes, Israel and the United States.
Protests began on Dec. 28, 2025, led by merchants at Tehran's Grand Bazaar amid rapid depreciation of the local currency and deepening economic hardships.
The demonstrations spread nationwide.
Protests intensified in Tehran on Jan. 8, prompting authorities to block internet access. Security forces intervened on Jan. 8-9 to suppress the demonstrations.
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