Up to 30,000 may have been killed in two days of Iran protests, TIME teported

• Up to 30,000 killed in Iran protests Jan 8–9, according to Health Ministry officials cited by TIME. 
• Hospital data roughly matches ministry figures; some deaths may be uncounted.
• Eyewitnesses report snipers and heavy gunfire amid nationwide internet blackout.

As many as 30,000 people may have been killed in Iran’s streets on January 8 and 9 alone, according to two senior officials in the country’s Ministry of Health, TIME reported.

The figures indicate a dramatic escalation in the government’s crackdown on nationwide protests and far surpass the official tally of 3,117 deaths announced by regime hardliners on January 21.

Read more: At least 5,000 people have been killed during Iran's protests, official says

The officials told TIME that so many people were killed over the two days that the state’s capacity to handle bodies was overwhelmed. Stocks of body bags were exhausted, and semi-trailers replaced ambulances to transport the dead.

Hospital Data Aligns With Ministry Estimates

TIME reported that a tally collected secretly by physicians and first responders also suggested a similar scale of deaths. According to Dr. Amir Parasta, a German-Iranian eye surgeon, hospitals had recorded 30,304 deaths as of Friday, though the figure excludes those who died in military hospitals or in areas not reached by investigators.

“We are getting closer to reality,” Dr. Parasta told Time. “But I guess the real figures are still way higher.”

The Iranian National Security Council has said that protests occurred in approximately 4,000 locations across the country.

Witness Accounts and Security Crackdown

Since December 28, hundreds of thousands of Iranians had gathered in the streets demanding economic relief and political reform.

While authorities initially employed non-lethal methods, reports stated that the crackdown intensified on January 8, with reported rooftop snipers and truck-mounted heavy machine guns reportedly used against demonstrators.

Eyewitnesses and cell phone footage captured the violence, which unfolded amid a nationwide internet blackout. According to a Tehran doctor who spoke with TIME, six hospitals in the capital alone recorded at least 217 protester deaths after January 8.

Rights Groups reports 

According to the US-based human rights news agency, Herana said on Friday, that the death toll from nationwide protests in Iran has reached 5,002, including 201 members of the security forces.

The agency reported that 26,752 people have been arrested during the demonstrations across the country.

Herana had reported Thursday that the death toll stood at 4,902, marking a rise of 100 deaths within 24 hours. Earlier data from Iran’s “Stop of Martyrs and Warriors” organization, based on forensic records, indicated 3,117 deaths, including 2,427 security personnel and civilians killed by armed groups.

Ongoing Uncertainty

TIME noted that the figures reported by the Ministry of Health have not been independently verified. Human rights organizations continue to document deaths, with the U.S.-based Human Rights Activists News Agency confirming 5,459 deaths and investigating 17,031 additional cases.