UK government sanctions individuals and organisation over crackdown on protests

CSW welcomes the UK government’s announcement of sanctions on 10 Iranian individuals and one organisation for their involvement in the deadly crackdown on civilian protests that began on 28 December 2025.

UK Foreign Secretary Yvette Cooper announced the sanctions on 2 February, stating: ‘The Iranian people have shown extreme courage in the face of brutality and repression over recent weeks simply for exercising their right to peaceful protest. The reports and shocking scenes of violence that have been seen around the world are horrific.’

The list of sanctioned individuals includes Iran’s Minister of the Interior, police chiefs and prominent members of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).

The announcement comes days after the European Union (EU) designated the IRGC as a terrorist organisation and imposed sanctions on 15 persons and six entities over their involvement in the crackdown on protesters. In retaliation, Iran designated EU armies as terrorist groups on 1 February.

Australia, Canada and the United States have also classified the IRGC as a terrorist organisation; however, on 28 January UK Deputy Prime Minister David Lammy indicated that it was a long-standing government policy ‘not to comment on whether a specific organisation is being considered for proscription’ when asked if the UK government would be doing the same.

Details continue to emerge of the scope and scale of violence meted out on unarmed protesters. The Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA) has reportedly confirmed the killings in 31 provinces of 6,854 individuals, including 152 children, 214 members of the armed forces, and 58 people who were not part of the protests. The organisation is still looking into 11,280 more cases.

Many of the fatalities show signs of having been executed at close range, or even while undergoing medical treatment. According to Iran Human Rights, pictures and videos broadcast on state television ‘clearly show that some corpses bore gunshot wounds to the head while also displaying signs of hospitalisation, such as hospital clothing or wristbands, and in some cases medical equipment for monitoring vital signs or breathing tubes still attached.’

In addition, over 50,000 people from wide ranging backgrounds are estimated to have been detained in an ongoing campaign of arrests, among them actors, students, hospital staff and writers. A journalist told Iran Human Rights: ‘At checkpoints, officers force young people to strip; if signs of injury from pellet guns or live ammunition are found on their bodies, they are arrested.’

Detainees are reportedly being denied access to lawyers; families do not know the whereabouts of their loved ones as the authorities are not providing information, and there are growing fears of extrajudicial executions in custody amid reports of unidentified bodies in mass graves.

CSW’s Founder President Mervyn Thomas said: ‘CSW welcomes the UK government’s imposition of sanctions on Iranian individuals and organisations responsible for unleashing extreme violence and committing severe human rights violations against protesters. However, we encourage the UK government to go further still, and designate the IRGC as a terrorist organisation. We also continue to urge the government of Iran to refrain from using violence against unarmed civilians, end its campaign of arbitrary arrests, immediately release all those detained in connection with the protests, and respect its obligations under international law, and particularly under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, to which it is party.’