The Sunday Times of London has reported that at least 16,500 people have been killed in a recent wave of violence across Iran, with more than 330,000 wounded, following a nationwide massacre by Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps forces.

Earlier estimates varied. CBS News placed the death toll at nearly 20,000, while the Persian-language broadcaster Iran International reported that more than 12,000 people had been killed.

According to multiple sources, the violence erupted after Crown Prince Reza Pahlavi called on Iranians to take part in peaceful demonstrations. Between the nights of 8 and 12 January, IRGC forces opened fire on protesters in more than 170 cities and towns across the country.

Witnesses and human rights groups say regime security forces and IRGC units used live ammunition against demonstrators, raided hospitals, forcibly removed the wounded, and withheld the bodies of those killed from their families. Authorities also imposed widespread internet shutdowns, severely restricting the flow of information. As a result, many victims remain unidentified.

Among those killed were numerous athletes, including national team members, coaches, and referees. Despite public appeals from prominent figures such as Paolo Maldini, the former AC Milan and Italy captain; Heshmat Mohajerani, the iconic former head coach of Iran’s national football team; Ali Karimi, former Bayern Munich midfielder; and Olympic medallists Kimia Alizadeh and Saeid Mollaei, international sports federations and the International Olympic Committee have so far remained silent.

Rebin Moradi

Below is a list of athletes, coaches, and referees identified as of 20 January 2026, all reportedly shot dead by IRGC or regime security forces while taking part in peaceful protests in their home cities:

Shayan Shakeri, taekwondo athlete from Rasht and member of Iran’s national youth team.

Amir Mohammad Karami, taekwondo athlete from Marvdasht and former national youth team member.

Hassan Ghasemi, karate coach and referee from Isfahan, killed in Isfahan.

Arshia Ahmadpour, 18-year-old boxer from Baharestan, Isfahan.

Sara Behboudi, 45-year-old mountaineer, killed in Rasht.

Mojtaba Tarshiz, professional footballer who played for Tractor and Nassaji in the Iranian Premier League. He was killed alongside his wife, Arezu Madani, after the couple attended a protest together. Witnesses said Arezu was shot first; when Mojtaba attempted to shield her, IRGC Basij forces opened fire on him. Both were killed.

Shahram Maghsoudi, Iranian national powerlifting champion, killed in Isfahan.

Rebin Moradi, 17-year-old player for Saipa’s youth football team, killed in Tehran.

Masoud Zatparvar, weightlifter and Iranian bodybuilding champion, killed in Rasht.

Sahba Rashtian, women’s football referee, killed in Isfahan.

Ahmad Khosravani, 21-year-old basketball player from Tehran, killed in Tehran.

Arnika Dabbagh, a 15-year-old medal-winning swimmer, killed in the northern city of Gorgan.

Mehdi Lavasani, coach of Mahan Novin FC and former player for Parseh Tehran and Torbat-e Yazd, was killed in Karaj

Afshin Miyarkiani, a taekwondo champion, referee, and coach, was first wounded while helping protesters in Chalus before being shot dead with three live bullets.

Mohammad Hajipour, a former goalkeeper of Iran’s national beach soccer team, was killed by Islamic Republic forces in the city of Rasht during the Iranian national uprising.

Shahab Fallahpour, a 19-year-old wrestler, was killed by a sniper’s gunfire in Andimeshk.

Reza Ghasemi

Reza Ghasemi, an Iranian Olympian who competed at the London and Rio Games and a former national 100-metre record holder, has condemned the Islamic Republic’s violent crackdown on nationwide protests, accusing the authorities of killing civilians and silencing the country.

In a statement published on social media, Ghasemi said history would remember what he described as the bloodshed carried out by Iran’s ruling system. “History will record that the Khamenei regime spilled the blood of innocent people across the streets,” he wrote.

Ghasemi said the protests, which he described as a national uprising, were crushed amid what he called the silence of international human rights bodies and with the support of China and Russia for Iran’s leadership.

He also accused the authorities of cutting Iran off from the outside world by imposing widespread communication blackouts. “History will write how the regime severed Iran’s connection with the world, silenced the voice of a nation and killed defenceless people in the streets,” he said.