A joint investigation led by the University of California, Berkeley’s Human Rights Center has revealed that approximately 120 protesters suffered partial or complete loss of vision due to actions by Iranian security forces suppressing nationwide protests towards the end of 2022.
While the investigation does not explicitly assert that authorities intentionally aimed to blind the protesters, several instances provide substantial evidence supporting this conclusion.
During a United Nations Human Rights Council meeting held in Geneva, Switzerland, Alexa Koenig—faculty co-director of the Human Rights Center—presented these distressing findings alongside Sara Hossain, chairperson of the Independent International Fact-Finding Mission on the Islamic Republic of Iran.
Established in November 2022, the UN mission aims to delve deeper into Iran’s brutal clampdown on women’s rights movements.
Massive protests swept across Iran following the death of Mahsa Jina Amini, a 22-year-old woman who passed away shortly after her arrest by morality police enforcing mandatory hijab rules.
The regime’s police claimed Amini succumbed to a heart attack, yet fellow female detainees countered that she had been brutally beaten. An independent UN report released earlier this month corroborated these claims, attributing Amini’s demise directly to physical violence.
Sparked by Amini’s tragic death, historic protests ensued, evolving into one of the most momentous popular upheavals in contemporary Iranian history.
As documented by various news sources and human rights organizations, Iranian regime security services reacted mercilessly, resulting in over 500 fatalities, numerous accounts of rape, torture, beatings, and arbitrary arrests impacting thousands. Reports suggested that over 500 protesters had been blinded; however, verifying such numbers proved challenging.
Several disturbing case studies emerged from eyewitness testimonies and survivor accounts shared during the Geneva conference.
For instance, Kosar Eftekhari, a former student and theater artist based in Tehran, recounted how a security officer pointed a paintball gun at her eyes and opened fire without provocation.
Despite seeking urgent medical help, she persisted in speaking openly about the incident. Consequently, she faced charges of “propaganda against the state” and served a five-month prison term prior to fleeing Iran.
Eftekhari remarked, “My eye serves as a testament to the vicious act and cruelty perpetrated by the Islamic Republic.” She emphasized her determination to continue raising global awareness regarding Iran’s brutal repression tactics.
Hossein Noorinikoo, a 27-year-old computer science graduate working in hospital administration at the time of Amini’s passing, participated actively in subsequent protests driven by both sartorial freedom demands for women and general opposition to the regime’s devaluation of citizens’ lives.
Tragically, Noorinikoo himself became a casualty when struck in the face by a barrage of plastic bullets fired across an intersection, causing severe damage to his left eye.
Although rushed to hospitals, he encountered reluctant healthcare providers unwilling to offer appropriate treatment. Ultimately, he managed to obtain necessary surgical intervention, albeit too late to salvage his vision.
Collaboratively, research teams from universities such as UC Berkeley, UCLA, and academic institutions worldwide amassed vast quantities of open-source data comprising photographs, videos, textual records, and witness statements chronicling human rights violations committed during the protests.
By employing advanced verification techniques, these dedicated investigators successfully authenticated over 120 incidences involving ocular trauma sustained by protesters subjected to excessive force wielded by Iranian authorities.
