translated an interview with an Iranian doctor based in USA. tldr it’s getting very bad and govt is shooting to kill, people afraid to go hospitals for fear of arrest Iranian Doctor Helps Wounded Demonstrators Remotely: “I Receive Horrific Messages” By Daisy Mohr, Middle East Correspondent Now that Iran is largely cut off from the rest of the world, it is impossible to verify how many people have been killed and wounded since the start of the massive demonstrations. It is clear, however, that the authorities are cracking down hard. The US-based human rights organisation HRANA says that well over 500 people have died. Iranian doctor Kayvan Mirhadi helps wounded demonstrators from afar and has unique access to his colleagues inside Iran. “I think the real number of dead and wounded is much higher; hospitals simply cannot cope with the influx. I receive horrific messages about people being shot while peacefully demonstrating. I have seen footage of very deliberate sniper shots. They shoot people directly in the head, heart and eyes, often young people,” Mirhadi says from the United States. He also hears that since this past weekend the situation has become much more intense. “I think they gave the green light this weekend to just shoot people. I hear from various sources that demonstrators have been shot at with AK-47s and pistols.” Mirhadi stays in contact with colleague doctors in Iran, who told him this weekend that the wounds are much more severe and that the number of deaths is rapidly rising. “They send me figures from hospitals across the country showing that every hospital reported at least 20 to 40 deceased people overnight. Many were already dead upon arrival. There is also a shortage of surgeons.” He does his best to get as complete a picture as possible of the medical situation and gives demonstrators tips and advice. “It may sound strange, but over the past years I have found creative ways to help people via Instagram,” says Mirhadi, who is head of internal medicine at Clifton Spring Hospital in the state of New York. On social media he is better known—with over 1.3 million followers—as Dr K. He has step-by-step instructions on what to do for gunshot wounds or burns. On his Instagram page he posts suggestions for how to treat chest and eye gunshot wounds at home. He did this during the wave of protests in 2022 as well, and this past week he suddenly received a flood of messages again. “Since the beginning of last week I received about 100 to 200 messages daily. But on Thursday it suddenly got much more serious. Within an hour more than 200 messages came in and then suddenly everything went black. I worry about the people I couldn’t help.” “Think of an excuse” It is often difficult to send videos and photos from Iran due to the poor internet connection. Mirhadi frequently works with written messages full of horrific details. “There are things you can treat yourself, but I also receive photos of serious injuries that really require hospital care. Where possible I refer them to reliable local doctors, and otherwise I say: come up with a story, think of an excuse.” This is because in Iran, demonstrators cannot simply go to a hospital. “They do everything possible not to go to the hospital. So first they try to contact every health professional in their environment. If your neighbour has a beauty clinic, you go there. Only if it’s really critical do you go to a hospital.” He says that not every doctor or healthcare provider understands the demonstrators. “They may have connections with the government. It can be very dangerous in hospitals. Security services just come in to identify people. Every detail is noted so that the wounded can be arrested later.” Wounded people are reluctant to show their faces in public; going to the hospital is their greatest fear.