In September 2022, Mahsa Amini, a 22-year-old Kurdish-Iranian woman, died in the custody of Iran's morality police. The protests that followed — under the slogan "Woman, Life, Freedom" — spread across Iran. Amnesty International documented over 500 killed, 18,000+ arrested. In January 2026, following a new wave of protests, Iranian security forces — including foreign militias recruited from Iraq — killed thousands of demonstrators. The UN Special Rapporteur reported the killings bore hallmarks of mass atrocity. Thousands were executed or forcibly disappeared.