Iran’s health ministry urges injured protesters to go to hospital, as rights groups report security forces are detaining the wounded from demonstrations.
PARIS: Iran’s health ministry has urged those injured in recent protests to seek hospital care, following alarming reports from rights groups that security forces are arresting wounded demonstrators.
Protests that began in late December over economic issues have evolved into a mass movement against the Islamic republic.
Rights groups accuse authorities of killing thousands during a severe crackdown amid an internet blackout.
Iranian authorities blame the violence on “rioters” allegedly spurred by the United States and Israel.
“Our advice to the public is that if they suffer any kind of injury, they should not try to treat it at home, and they should not worry about going to medical centres,” the health ministry stated.
Rights groups allege security forces fired rifles and shotguns loaded with metal pellets at protesters’ heads and torsos.
They further accuse forces of raiding medical centres and homes to identify and arrest protesters based on their wounds.
“Some wounded individuals were detained before receiving medical treatment, others during treatment, and some immediately after discharge,” the Center for Human Rights in Iran reported.
Amnesty International reported the arrest of a 19-year-old man, Amirhossein Ghaderzadeh, after security forces raided his home.
Forces allegedly stripped him and his sisters naked to search for protest-related injuries before arresting him due to pellet wounds.
The General Directorate of Prisons of Tehran Province denied that injured “rioters” were being taken to prison instead of medical centres.
Iranians outside the country told AFP that injured protesters are often too afraid to go to hospital because police are present.
They said doctors have been treating people secretly in their homes.
An unverified social media image shows three women using a cellphone flashlight to remove pellets from a woman’s back.
Reza Pahlavi, son of the ousted shah, echoed reports of security personnel being “embedded” in hospitals to arrest protesters.
He called on Iranians to document the names of those obstructing treatment for future accountability.
