Iranian doctors report forces deliberately aiming at heads, eyes, vital organs of protesters

One doctor said the hospital resembled a battlefield and that supplies had run out.

By Vered Weiss, World Israel News

Iranian doctors say security forces are intentionally aiming at protesters’ heads and eyes, describing a surge of gunshot wounds that has overwhelmed hospitals in the capital and left many demonstrators permanently blinded.

Physicians who contacted foreign media from inside Tehran said hundreds of patients have arrived with similar injuries, most inflicted at close range.

An ophthalmologist working in a major hospital reported more than 400 eye injuries from gunfire, telling the Guardian that many victims were struck by metal pellets fired from shotguns.

Other doctors said they had treated people shot with rifles using deadlier rounds.

One physician said the pattern mirrored previous crackdowns. According to him, “[Security forces] are deliberately shooting at the head and the eyes. They want to damage the head and the eyes so they can no longer see, the same thing they did in [2022].” He added that “eyes were hit by birdshot pellets, and it was deliberate; they are shooting to kill.”

Medical teams described conditions inside emergency departments as chaotic, especially after authorities cut internet access last Thursday.

One doctor said the hospital resembled a battlefield and that supplies had run out.

Another recounted treating wounded protesters outdoors on hospital grounds in freezing temperatures because the wards were full. Several physicians said security personnel frequently entered medical facilities to detain the injured.

Accounts from protesters and unverified videos circulating online show people being shot at rallies in cities across Iran.

One demonstrator told the Guardian he watched plainclothes officers blend into crowds at a peaceful gathering before firing into the backs of people’s heads at short range.

Footage posted to social networks shows volleys of gunfire and bodies lying in the streets, while other clips appear to show morgues filled with victims.

The US-based Abdorrahman Boroumand Center for Human Rights accused Iranian forces of using tactics meant to maim and intimidate.

A spokesperson said the Islamic Republic is deliberately targeting “vital organs,” turning so-called less-lethal weapons into tools of “systematic mutilation and permanent disability.”

Doctors who contacted foreign outlets, as well as those who have since fled Iran, believe the official death toll of roughly 2,000 is far below reality. Some rights groups outside the country say the number of people killed in the crackdown is far higher, with one opposition outlet claiming internal Iranian security estimates exceed 12,000.

Iranian officials continue to blame the United States and Israel for the unrest, while Washington and Jerusalem have expressed support for the protest movement.