In this exclusive documentary, FRANCE 24 retraces the chronology of events that took place in Iran from December 28, 2025, when merchants in Tehran's Grand Bazaar went on strike, to January 18, 2026, with the internet cut off by authorities. Behind closed doors, from January 8 to 11, Iran's worst massacre took place since the 1979 establishment of the Islamic Republic. Warning: viewers may find the footage and descriptions in this report upsetting.
In early January, FRANCE 24 assembled a cross-media team of journalists, including senior producer Mariam Pirzadeh, online journalist Bahar Makooi and Ershad Alijani from the FRANCE 24 Observers. They collated and verified the many videos they received from Iran before, after and sometimes during the internet blackout. They also gathered the harrowing testimonies of several participants in, and victims of, the protest movement.
Read more‘I saw 12 people collapsed in a pool of blood’: Eyewitness describes Iran’s deadly crackdown
What emerged is a relentless, sometimes painful account of the extreme police brutality used by the Iranian regime from the early days of the protests, which escalated to the use of military methods and weapons from January 8 onwards. Then came the pressure put on victims' families, who were tracked down in hospitals and morgues as they went to collect their injured or dead loved ones, whom they had to pay for.
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Our documentary ends on January 18, with undoubtedly tens of thousands of victims. It will be up to history to determine the final toll.
Illustrations by Adel Gastel.
English (US) · 