GENEVA, Switzerland — The World Health Organization chief said Thursday that the UN agency had confirmed recent attacks on a hospital in Iran, while multiple health facilities were damaged in the unrest, leaving dozens of paramedics injured.
“I am deeply concerned by multiple reports of health personnel and medical facilities in Iran being impacted by the recent insecurity, and prevented from delivering their essential services to people requiring care,” Tedros Adhanom Ghebreyesus said on X.
He pointed to reports in recent days of “health workers assaulted, and at least five doctors detained, while treating injured patients.”
“I call for the release of any health worker in detention. Healthcare personnel should never face intimidation,” he insisted.
Protests broke out in Iran in late December over economic grievances, but turned into a mass movement against the Islamic Republic, with huge street demonstrations for several days earlier this month.
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Rights groups have accused authorities of killing thousands in an unprecedented crackdown under the cover of an ongoing internet shutdown, while Iranian authorities say the violence was caused by “rioters” spurred by the United States and Israel.
Alireza Golchini, a surgeon from Qazvin, has been sentenced to death for treating injured protesters in Iran.
Doctors are being arrested and executed for doing their jobs.
This is state terror.
Don’t believe the regime’s claim about stopping 800 executions.
When this regime… https://t.co/MlBVciZvv6 pic.twitter.com/mvZ6MQyfIr
— Masih Alinejad ????️ (@AlinejadMasih) January 28, 2026
The US-based Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA) has said it has confirmed that 6,373 people have been killed and more than 40,000 arrested.
But NGOs tracking the toll from the crackdown have said their task has been impeded by the internet shutdown, warning that the actual toll is likely to be far higher than confirmed figures.
Little information has also so far emerged about the situation at health facilities.
But Tedros said Thursday that WHO had confirmed “that the Khomeini Hospital, in the western city of Ilam, came under attack earlier in January.”
“Violence was reported inside and around the facility following the transfer of injured people to the hospital,” he said, adding that “medical services and supplies were disrupted and affected.”
This frame grab from videos taken between January 9 and January 11, 2026, and circulating on social media, purportedly shows images from a morgue with dozens of bodies and mourners after the government crackdown on the outskirts of Iran’s capital, in Kahrizak, Tehran Province. (UGC via AP)
The UN health agency had “also confirmed that multiple health facilities were damaged across Iran in recent weeks, including 10 pre-hospital emergency posts, where more than 50 paramedics were injured and over 200 ambulances damaged,” Tedros said.
“Tear gas was also reportedly used at Sina Hospital in Tehran,” he said, highlighting that “the recent crisis, according to reports, has strained the health system.”
The WHO chief said it was “imperative that health facilities are protected and be able to deliver their critical health services in an unimpeded manner.”
“This is fundamental to the provision of health care required by all people who need services, especially during times of crisis,” he said.
“Healthcare should never be a target.”
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