12 March 2026
To The United Nations Secretary-General, Mr. António Guterres,
To the Members of the United Nations Security Council,
To the UN Department of Political and Peacebuilding Affairs,
To the Leadership and Member States of the European Union,
To the Parliaments of the United Kingdom, Canada, and Australia,
To the Congress of the United States,
We, the undersigned coalition of global human rights and women's rights organizations, political groups and civil society representatives, write to express our grave concern regarding the escalating violence and military action in Iran. The United States and Israel have started an illegal war against Iran since 28 February, and the war has now expanded into a wider conflict affecting every country in the region.
Caught between the Islamic Republic’s state-led massacre in early 2026 and the arrival of external military forces, the Iranian people are facing a dual crisis of unprecedented scale. Human rights organisations have been able to verify the killing of at least 7,000 protestors while other reports estimate the number of protesters killed by the regime could be much higher. At least 53,000 were arrested by Security forces in January including many under 18. From activists to vulnerable groups, the population now faces a crushing intersection of internal repression and a war threatening the region’s economy, ecology, and history.
Decades of academic research and historical experience has shown that international military aggression does not lead to democracy. Instead, it intensifies violence, ruins essential infrastructure, and creates conditions favorable to increased authoritarianism and civil conflict.
Reports indicate that a strike, most likely committed by the United States, on the Shajareh Tayyebeh girls' elementary school in Minab, Iran, resulted in the confirmed deaths of 168 children. Since then and according to the Iranian Red Cross team, at least 1,332 civilians have been killed. In addition, 6,668 civilian structures, 5,535 residential units, and 65 schools have been damaged and 14 medical centers have been affected. Reports also indicate that 11 facilities affiliated with the Iranian Red Crescent Society have been targeted, and many members have been injured.
We are also very much concerned for the lives of political prisoners and detained protesters, especially those held in solitary confinements without means of escape or communication and those facing executions are in imminent peril. History has shown that the Islamic Republic has repeatedly and systematically exploited war to escalate violence against political prisoners. There is also grave concern that, amidst continued blackout, death sentences may be carried out in secrecy without notification to lawyers or families of detainees.
There are also reports indicating strikes near Evin prison, Zanjan prison where Nobel Peace Prize Laureate Narges Mohammadi is exiled to, Grand Tehran Prison, Mahabad detention center and many more prison facilities across the country. In the weeks and months leading up to the outbreak of war, families of prisoners, lawyers, and human rights activists repeatedly warned that the lives of detainees were in danger. They called for their release or, at the very least, for temporary furloughs given the wartime conditions. However, these pleas were systematically ignored by officials of the Islamic Republic.
We underscore that under International Humanitarian Law, all civilian objects—including schools, hospitals, residential areas, and detention facilities—are protected from attacks. The intentional targeting of these sites, or the failure to distinguish between military targets and protected persons and sites hors de combat, constitutes a grave breach of the Geneva Conventions and a war crime under the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court.
We are also deeply concerned about the risks facing cultural heritage sites amid escalating violence. On 2 March 2026, the Golestan Palace, a UNESCO World Heritage site, sustained structural damage from shockwaves and debris following an airstrike on the nearby Arg Square. A 17th-century palace in Isfahan, Chehel Sotoon, was also damaged by air strikes on 9 March 2026. The failure to respect protected "buffer zones" surrounding cultural heritage is a violation of the obligations established under the 1954 Hague Convention for the Protection of Cultural Property in the Event of Armed Conflict.
As of today, Iran remains under a near-total internet blackout entering its thirteenth day. This state-imposed disruption of digital communications severely restricts civilians’ ability to access life-saving information and serves as a veil for further atrocities.
Given the urgency of the situation, we appeal to the international community to take action:
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Immediate Multilateral Ceasefire: An immediate cessation of hostilities by all parties including the United States, Israel, and Islamic Republic of Iran in order to prevent further civilian casualties and avert a wider regional escalation. Crucially, the international community must uphold Iran’s territorial integrity and prevent any foreign invasion or intervention.
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Independent Investigation and Accountability for War Crimes: The immediate establishment of an independent international commission of inquiry, under the auspices of the United Nations, to investigate alleged “war crimes” by United States, Israel and Islamic Republic and "Crimes Against Humanity" by the Islamic Republic for massacre of protestors in January to ensure accountability in accordance with international law.
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Humanitarian Aid and UN Peacekeeping: immediate establishment of secure humanitarian aid provision, safe delivery of medical assistance, food, and essential supplies to affected civilian populations. We further urge the deployment of a UN-mandated civilian protection and monitoring mechanism, in coordination with international humanitarian organizations, to safeguard hospitals, schools, detention facilities, and other civilian infrastructure, and to facilitate independent access for humanitarian actors. We also urge the freedom of all political prisoners under the transitional justice mechanism laid out below.
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Restoration of Connectivity : the immediate restoration of internet access and communication networks in Iran. The ability of civilians to communicate, access information, and document potential human rights violations is a fundamental prerequisite for human rights monitoring and civilian safety.
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Transitional Justice and Accountability: Support the development of a comprehensive transitional justice process in Iran. Such a process should include freedom of all political prisoners, truth-seeking mechanisms, accountability for human rights violations, reparations for the victims, institutional reform, and guarantees of non-recurrence, in line with International Human Rights Law and established UN frameworks for transitional justice.
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UN-Supervised Democratic Transition: Grounded in the principle of self-determination, an inclusive, peaceful, and internationally monitored political process must enable the Iranian people to establish democratic and representative institutions. This process should be integrated with a comprehensive transitional justice framework.
Civil society emphasizes that a peaceful transition, guided by international standards of transitional justice and a UN-monitored democratic process, remains a primary objective for lasting stability.The Islamic Republic must immediately commit to comply with the will of the people of Iran through agreeing to the UN-supervised referendum, for such a ceasefire to become sustainable, and for the country to be saved from further destruction.
As humanitarian risks facing civilians continue to intensify, the protection of human life and the preservation of fundamental rights must remain the foremost priority of the international community. We call an emergency session to address the escalating situation and to take steps aimed at priorities listed above.
“Do not say all are at war, what can my peace do.
You are not one, but a thousand; light your own torch.”
–Jalal al-Din Muhammad Rumi
-Organizations:
The Iran Circle, Inc.
Iran Justice
Iranian Association for the Defense of Human Rights in Spain
The Narges Foundation-
