Iranians have been angrily protesting since last month over fuel price hikes. In a statement, the United Nations human rights office claimed to have “verified video footage” showing security forces firing on protesters with seeming intent to kill. Express.co.uk was sent further video footage appearing to verify the claims as the US has insisted the death toll has reached 1,000 – a total that has not been verified by Amnesty International or the UN.
Video footage of the unrest appears to show terrified demonstrators running away as the sound of gunfire ricochets around the street.
A masked man can be seen towards the end of the clip running for cover as smoke fills the air.
The video includes red circles around those it purports to be holding guns in a menacing threat to those protesting.
The UN has said it has evidence 208 people have been killed during the unrest.
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But their statement added: “There are also reports, which the UN human rights office has so far been unable to verify, suggesting more than twice that number killed.”
The US envoy to Tehran, Brian Hook, claimed the brutal police crackdown has resulted in up 1,000 deaths.
He told reporters the anti-government demonstrations were “the worst political crisis the regime has faced in its 40 years”.
He added the furious crackdown by police “could have murdered over a thousand Iranian citizens since the protests began”.
Mr Hook added: “These protests have made clear what Secretary Mike Pompeo and I have been saying for quite some time.
“The Iranian people want the regime to focus on investing in people, not proxies. They are sick of the regime squandering its wealth on proxy warfare, which leads only to economic pressure and diplomatic isolation.
“Unfortunately, this is exactly what the Iranian regime continues to do.
“Even while the Iranian people were filling the streets, calling for an end to sectarian adventurism.”