Activists allege that Iran has aired at least 97 coerced confessions from protesters, some following torture.
In the clips, broadcast on Iranian state media, people are shown wearing handcuffs and with their faces blurred.
The confessions are interspersed with clips that appear to show protesters attacking security forces, setting fires or destroying property.
Iran alleges that these confessions – which often include references to the US or Israel – are proof of foreign plots behind the protests that have gripped the nation in recent weeks.
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Activists say that they are coerced confessions, long a staple of Iran’s hard-line state television. And they are coming at an unprecedentd pace.
Iranian state media has aired nearly 100 confessions from protesters, many expressing remorse for their actions, since the protests began on 28 December, according to a rights group that is tracking the videos.
The US-based Human Rights Activists News Agency says that based on testimony from prior detainees, the confessions often come after psychological or physical torture, and can have serious consequences, including the death penalty.
“These rights violations compound on top of each other and lead to horrible outcomes. This is a pattern that’s been implemented by the regime time and time again,” said Skylar Thompson, the group’s deputy director.
Iran’s mission to the United Nations did not return a request for comment.
Iranian officials have described the protests as “riots” orchestrated by the United States and Israel. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi has said the violence must be foreign-influenced because Iranians would never set mosques on fire.
The nearly 100 confessions broadcast over just two weeks is unprecedented for Iran, Ms Thompson said.
By comparison, from 2010 to 2020 there were around 350 forced confessions broadcast on state media, according to the activist groups Justice for Iran and the International Federation for Human Rights, the last major study compiled by activists.
The rights group Together Against the Death Penalty said there were 40 to 60 confessions aired in 2025.
