ERBIL, Kurdistan Region of Iraq – Protesters arrested for their involvement in Iran’s ongoing nationwide protests have been subjected to ‘widespread’ sexual violence while in custody, resulting in severe psychological damage, a human rights monitor warned on Sunday.

Iran has been rocked by nationwide protests since late last year, which have spread to the majority of provinces and increasingly become anti-government in nature, prompting a violent crackdown from Iranian authorities. 

In addition to tens of thousands killed and injured, more than 50,000 people have been arrested, according to unverified reports from watchdogs.

“The Hengaw Human Rights Organization warns about the widespread use of sexual violence in this wave of protests, and on this basis, it describes the mental state of the detainees as unstable,” the Oslo-based watchdog said in a post on X. 

Hengaw called on the Iranian civil society and the international community to “take swift action regarding access to trustworthy psychologists for the detained,” noting that several detainees they interviewed “wanted to end their own lives” after their release.

As Iran continues its violent crackdown on the demonstrations, state media have been airing alleged confession documentaries, including interviews with families of killed protesters backing up the state’s narratives of the protests, a move that rights groups have criticized as “forced confessions.”

The alleged confessions and videos are widely believed to be coerced, often obtained under threats, psychological pressure, and in some cases physical torture.

The US-based Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA) reports that Iranian security forces have killed more than 7,000 protesters and injured over 11,000 since the demonstrations began in late December. The monitor also reports that at least 245 forced confessions have been broadcast so far.