The protests, which began in late 2025 due to a sharp decline in the Iranian economy, faced a severe government crackdown marked by mass arrests, killings, and a near-total internet shutdown. Rights organizations report thousands have been killed or detained. The U.N. Human Rights Council called an emergency session, highlighting that recent violence against protesters is the deadliest since the 1979 Iranian revolution.
In Washington, Trump assured protesters that “help is on the way,” while Israeli forces have increased their presence in the region. Recently, Trump has pushed for “new leadership” in Iran and warned of potential military action in response to the crackdown.
The European Union designated the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps as a terrorist organization following the crackdown. “Repression cannot go unanswered,” EU diplomat Kaja Kallas wrote on X.
“The EU already has comprehensive sanctions on Iran for human rights abuses, nuclear proliferation activities, and Tehran’s support for Russia’s war in Ukraine, and I’m ready to propose additional sanctions in response to the regime’s brutal repression of protesters,” she told POLITICO earlier this month.
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