live Live Blog: 3 US Service Members Killed In Iran Operations

Human Rights Watch (HRW) said Iran's human rights situation has spiraled deeper into crisis amid the killings of antiestablishment protesters in recent weeks, mass and "arbitrary arrests, and a rise in executions to "a scale unseen since the late 1980s."

In its 2026 World Report on human rights, which reviews human rights practices in more than 100 countries, HRW said last year was characterized by "widespread and systematic" violations of the right to life, while it found that the start of this year was marked by evidence "of a coordinated escalation in the authorities’ use of unlawful and lethal force" in a crackdown on protests sparked by deteriorating living conditions.

“The spiral of impunity and bloodshed resulted in an execution spree unseen in decades, in 2025, and the deadliest protest crackdown that led to unprecedented mass killings of thousands of protesters and bystanders this year,” said Bahar Saba, senior Iran researcher at Human Rights Watch.

“The international community should urgently pursue concrete accountability measures through all available avenues, including universal jurisdiction, to hold those responsible to account.”

The families of those killed in the protests in Malekshahi in Iran's Ilam Province have issued a statement demanding that those who ordered and carried out the shootings be held accountable.

The statement, signed by a group of families of the deceased, states that the shooting of protesting citizens and the killing of Latif Karimi, Mohammad Reza Karami, Mehdi Emamipour, Reza Azimzadeh, and Mohsen (Fares) Mohammadi took place inside the Malekshahi building of the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) and that this is "recorded and undeniable" with existing documents, images, and evidence.

The families wrote in the statement that "all the IRGC commanders were present and responsible inside the building at the moment of the shooting." They specifically held the commander of the Malekshahi IRGC, Rasoul Moradian, responsible.

Reports from Malekshahi claim that security forces also fired on crowds of protesters, resulting in many deaths and injuries.

The families of the victims have emphasized that their goal is to establish the truth and make sure justice prevails and have said they will continue to pursue the case through legal and international channels.

Good morning.

"They would like to negotiate," Trump told reporters at the White House on February 3, referring to Iran. "We are negotiating with them right now."

The total number of deaths confirmed by HRANA has reached 6,872. According to these figures, 6,443 of those killed have been recorded as protesters, while 156 are listed as children under the age of 18.

White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt confirmed a report on February 3 that the United States had shot down an Iranian drone that drew near to the USS Abraham Lincoln in the Arabian Sea.

The US military announced on February 3 that it had shot down an Iranian drone that military officials said had "aggressively approached" the flagship aircraft carrier.

US Central Command (CENTCOM) said the carrier was sailing in the Arabian Sea about 500 miles off the southern coast of Iran on February 3 when an Iranian Shahed-139 drone approached it with "unclear intent."

The drone continued to fly toward the ship despite de-escalation measures by US forces in international waters, Tim Hawkins, a spokesman for CENTCOM, told Reuters and Fox News.

The US military said an F-35C fighter jet from the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln shot down the drone in "self-defense" to protect the ship and personnel present.

US officials stressed that no US personnel were injured in the incident and no equipment was damaged.

CENTCOM also reported a separate incident that day. Hours after the drone was shot down, Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) forces reportedly harassed a US-flagged merchant ship with an American crew in the Strait of Hormuz.

According to Fox News, two IRGC boats, along with an Iranian drone, approached the MV Stena Imperator at high speed and threatened to seize it.

CENTCOM says the guided missile destroyer USS McFaul, which was in the area, immediately responded and escorted the vessel with air support. According to the US military, the situation has since de-escalated and the US tanker has continued on its way.

The incidents come as diplomatic efforts are under way to broker nuclear talks between Iran and the United States.

Mojgan Ilanloo, a documentary filmmaker inside Iran, has spoken of a raid by security officers on the home of photojournalist Yalda Moeiri.

In a post on Instagram on February 4, he wrote: "10 IRGC (Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps) intelligence forces stormed Ms. Moeiri's house at 8 a.m. this morning."

According to Ilanloo, they ransacked her house while she was “asleep and took all her electronic devices…with them.”

According to the report, the photojournalist has also been asked to present herself to the Ardebili Holy Prosecutor's Office.

Judiciary spokesman Ali Asghar Jahangir says the Iranian authorities will “definitely” prosecute anyone who attended the protests that swept the country. He said this includes anyone who was “directly involved, provided assistance, supported, or participated” and thus committed "criminal acts."

Without providing details of the scope of the legal terms he used or the "criminal actions" the judicial body was considering, Jahangir called the protests "sedition" and assured that the body would not "let go" of those who played a role in it.

The statement came even as numerous reports have been published -- even by the Islamic republic's own authorities -- of arrests and killings of bystanders of the protests.

Jahangir also confirmed the filing of cases against several celebrities, adding: "Regarding how many celebrities were summoned in this regard and cases have been filed against them, we must wait until the completion of the cases and initial investigations."

“The handling of these cases has begun quickly, indictments have been issued for some figures, and the results will be made known to the nation as soon as possible," he added.

Jahangir cited the case that had been opened against Mohammad Saedinia, a well-known entrepreneur and owner of cafes and restaurants, who had been arrested for "officially supporting and accompanying rioters."

At a government press conference on February 27, an Iranian reporter, Parisa Hashemi, harshly criticized the performance of Islamic Republic officials before posing a question to Fatemeh Mohajerani, a spokesperson for President Masud Pezeshkian.

In her question, Hashemi listed numerous problems in the country and the suppression of protests, saying: "Up until now, there have only been apologies and sympathy. None of the officials have resigned, none. In any other country, in the end, the officials would either die of shame or commit suicide out of honor, but this constant thirst for service in our managers, which is never satisfied, has caused us to be faced with the same promises again."

Mohajerani responded by saying, "That was a statement."

Anwar Gargash, diplomatic adviser to the president of the United Arab Emirates, says the Middle East cannot afford another confrontation between the United States and Iran, and Tehran must reach a nuclear agreement with Washington.

"I think the region has gone through various calamitous confrontations. I don't think we need another one, but I would like to see direct Iranian-American negotiations leading to understandings so that we don't have these issues every other day," he said on February 4 at the World Governments Summit in Dubai.

Iran and the United States will resume nuclear talks in Turkey on Friday, according to Iranian and US officials who spoke to Reuters on February 2.

A regional diplomat also told Reuters that representatives from countries such as Saudi Arabia and Egypt would participate in the negotiations.

Ali Shamkhani, political adviser to the leader of the Islamic Republic, said in an interview with the Al-Mayadeen TV channel that Iran has no intention of transferring its enriched uranium reserves abroad and that possible negotiations with the United States should be limited solely to the nuclear issue.

In the interview, he rejected the proposal to transfer uranium reserves outside Iran, including to Russia, saying, "There is no reason to transfer the stored materials outside Iran."

Dmitry Peskov, the Russian presidential spokesman, said on February 1 that Moscow has long offered its services to process or store Iran’s enriched uranium.

Shamkhani added that if US concerns are addressed, there is a possibility of reducing the enrichment level from 60 percent to 20 percent, but stressed that this action must be accompanied by a “price payment” from the other side.

He did not specify what he meant by “price payment.”

He also said the exact amount of enriched uranium reserves is still unknown, as some of it is “under rubble.” He said Iran is in talks with the International Atomic Energy Agency to estimate the amount of these reserves “while maintaining security.”

The political adviser to Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei made it clear that Iran will negotiate only with the United States and only on the nuclear issue.

Shamkhani, echoing the statements of other Islamic Republic officials that US threats must discontinue and the focus be on the nuclear issue, added: "If negotiations begin with these conditions, there is a possibility of direct and indirect meetings."

These comments come as President Donald Trump said that Iran is "talking seriously" with the US.

US envoy Steve Witkoff is expected to arrive in Israel on February 3 to hold talks with Israeli officials, two days before a key meeting in Istanbul with Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi in an attempt to jumpstart negotiations on Tehran’s nuclear program and tamp down fears of a new war in the Middle East.

Witkoff will reportedly meet with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and other senior Israeli officials, who have been pushing for any deal with Iran to include removing any enriched uranium from Iran along with a halt to all enrichment processing, as well as putting an end to Iran’s financing of its regional proxies and limits to its ballistic missile program.

The United States hasn’t commented on the Iranian talks, but Iranian President Masud Pezeshkian said in post on X on February 3 that he had instructed Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi "based on the principles of dignity, wisdom, and expediency within the framework of national interests."

Intense Shuttle Diplomacy

Pezeshkian has issued warnings recently that any diplomatic success with Washington hinges on an end to threats, a reference to the current buildup of US military might in Middle East waters.

He added that progress in talks could be made “provided that there is an appropriate atmosphere free from threats and unreasonable expectations.”

The Istanbul talks follow an intense week of shuttle diplomacy: Iran's security chief Ali Larijani met with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow on January 30, while Araqchi traveled to Turkey to consult with President Recep Tayyip Erdogan and Foreign Minister Hakan Fidan.

At the same time, the US military has deployed a naval strike group, led by the USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier, off the coast of Iran in response to Tehran’s deadly crackdown on unrest sparked by the country’s deteriorating living conditions.

Late last month, US President Donald Trump announced that a "massive armada" was moving toward Iran, warning it could act with "speed and fury" if necessary, while expressing hope for a "fair deal" that would leave Iran without nuclear weapons.

Some in Iran have suggested a potential deal would see Iran's stockpile of highly enriched uranium -- reportedly buried underground following US strikes last June -- transferred to another country.

Because of cuts to Internet service in Iran, it is difficult to assess the number of protesters who have been killed during the mass demonstrations, which appear to have eased in recent days.

The US-based rights organization HRANA, whose figures RFE/RL has been regularly citing since the violent crackdown began in Iran in December 2025, says its confirmed death toll, including security forces, is now 6,854, while the number of fatalities still under investigation is 11,280. More than 50,000 people have been arrested.

Some estimates by officials quoted off the record by various media outlets put the death toll at several times higher.