Overview
- Thousands of students demonstrated at major universities in Tehran and in Mashhad as classes resumed about a month after nationwide unrest.
- Clashes broke out between anti-government students and Basij-aligned groups, with heavily armed security forces positioned outside campus entrances.
- Witnesses and opposition sources reported tear gas used and shots fired in Tehran as some gatherings spilled into surrounding streets.
- Casualty figures from January’s crackdown remain sharply contested, with the government stating 3,117 deaths while NGOs, a UN expert and the U.S. cite significantly higher totals.
- Authorities have rejected an independent UN fact-finding mission and withheld comprehensive arrest data despite reports of tens of thousands detained.