INTERNACIONAL
Former Iranian prisoners reveal torture horrors as regime kills protesters on sight during crackdown
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As protests spread across Iran and security forces intensify their crackdown, former political prisoners are warning that what is visible on the streets represents only a fraction of the violence unfolding behind prison walls.
In interviews with Fox News Digital, three former detainees described a system designed not just to punish dissent, but to break it through solitary confinement, beatings, medical neglect and threats of execution. Their accounts span nearly two decades, from the 2009 uprising to the «Woman, Life, Freedom» movement and the current wave of unrest, pointing to what they describe as a consistent and escalating pattern of abuse.
Maryam Shariatmadari, one of the faces of the «Girls of Revolution Street» protests against Iran’s mandatory hijab laws, was sentenced to one year in prison in March 2018 for what authorities described as «encouraging corruption by removing her hijab.»
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A woman with a mock-up of a gunshot bullet wound on her forehead looks on during a rally in support of nationwide protests in Iran, in Rome, Italy, Jan. 13, 2026. (Francesco Fotia/ Reuters )
Speaking this week, Shariatmadari said the scale of the current protests has pushed the regime beyond its capacity to detain demonstrators.
«According to the testimonies of eyewitnesses, the suppressive forces of the Islamic Republic … are delivering ‘final shots’ to wounded protesters, killing them on the spot,» she said. «This has been unprecedented over the past 47 years and indicates that the number of detainees has become so large that the Islamic Republic no longer has the capacity to hold them and is killing them without any form of trial.»
She said that while detainees in earlier uprisings were transferred to prisons or unofficial «safe houses,» authorities expanded detention during the 2022 «Woman, Life, Freedom» protests to schools, ambulances and food transport vehicles.
«They used ambulances and food transport vehicles to detain protesters, something I believe to be unprecedented in human history,» Shariatmadari said.
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Maryam Shariatmadari was detained by Iranian security forces after removing her hijab in protest against mandatory veiling laws during the «Girls of Revolution Street» demonstrations in Tehran. Shariatmadari was later sentenced to one year in prison for what authorities described as «encouraging corruption by removing her hijab.» (Fox News)
Inside detention facilities, she described systematic abuse.
«These include beatings, transfers to prisons without separation based on the type of offense, and the deliberate incitement of other inmates to harass and abuse us,» she said.
One of her most traumatic experiences occurred during interrogation.
«I was ordered to remove my clothes and remain completely naked for a body search while cameras were present,» Shariatmadari said. «I knew that men were watching me, and I could hear their voices.»
She also recalled being denied urgent medical care after an injury.
«Only after approximately 24 hours was I taken to a hospital to undergo surgery,» she said. «I believe this happened as a result of media pressure and public support.»
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Iranians attend an anti-government protest in Tehran, Iran, on Jan. 9, 2026. (UGC via AP)
Eight hours a day, blindfolded
Shariatmadari’s husband, Mehdi Ghadimi, a freelance journalist who worked with reformist newspapers Etemad and Shargh, was arrested in January 2023 during protests and taken to an undisclosed location. He spent nearly his entire detention in solitary confinement.
«I was interrogated twice daily, morning and afternoon, for eight hours with my eyes blindfolded,» Ghadimi said.
In the final days of his detention, he was transferred to a shared cell, where he encountered detainees from across Iranian society.
«I encountered students, workers, technical specialists and others who had been arrested during the Woman, Life, Freedom movement,» he said.
According to Ghadimi, detainees accused of supporting the Pahlavi dynasty were beaten more severely.
«Because their slogans and symbols supported the Pahlavi dynasty, they were beaten far more than the others,» he said.
Based on his experience, he warned that current detainees are likely to face even harsher treatment.
«I can only imagine that this time all detainees will face similarly brutal treatment,» Ghadimi said, adding that Iran’s judiciary chief has publicly signaled a hard line.
Ghadimi, who fled the country in 2024, also cited figures circulating among activists claiming well over the 2,600 reported, likely dwarfing that number. He said the number of detainees is likely far higher than the 10,000 reported.
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In this photo obtained by The Associated Press, protesters chant slogans during an anti-government protest in Tehran, Iran, Thursday, Jan. 8, 2026. (UGC via AP) (UGC via AP)
«On the other side of those bars is hell»
Shabnam Madadzadeh, who was imprisoned during the 2009 uprising, said watching the current protests has revived memories of extreme brutality and raised fears of mass executions.
«What immediately comes to my mind is the regime’s sheer brutality in torture and killing,» Madadzadeh said.
She said detention facilities were already overflowing during the 2009 protests.
«There was no space left for detainees. Even the solitary cells were overflowing with people,» she said.
Madadzadeh recalled interrogators accusing nearly everyone arrested of links to the Mujahedin-e Khalq and described torture and beatings «to the point of killing.»
One threat made to her during interrogation still haunts her.
«He told me: ‘If we are going to be overthrown, we will kill all of you. We will leave no one alive,’» she said.
She warned that the current internet blackout has heightened the danger for detainees.
«We truly do not know what level of brutality is currently taking place inside the prisons,» Madadzadeh said, adding that information reaching her suggests the regime is seeking to carry out executions quickly.
Citing Iran’s past, she warned of the risk of mass killings similar to the 1988 executions of political prisoners.
«Today, at a moment when the regime is on the brink of collapse, there is a real danger that such a massacre could be repeated,» she said.
Madadzadeh said young detainees are likely facing forced confessions, mock executions and threats of sexual violence.
«Whatever I do to you, no one will hear your voice,» an interrogator once told her, she recalled.
She also emphasized the suffering of families searching for loved ones.
«Families are moving between detention centers, prisons, morgues and cemeteries,» she said. «This uncertainty itself is the greatest form of torture.»
As the protests continue, all three former prisoners said the outside world must not look away.
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Shabnam Madadzadeh, a former political prisoner detained during Iran’s 2009 uprising, later spoke publicly about torture, solitary confinement and threats of execution inside the Islamic Republic’s prisons, warning that detainees during the current protests face extreme and immediate danger. (Fox News)
«The first thing I expect the free world to understand is the true voice of the people inside Iran,» Shariatmadari said. «The people of Iran are united in their demand for regime change and want to restore Iran to its former dignity, a dignity in which human rights and human worth were respected.»
Ghadimi echoed that warning.
«Without a doubt, when the regime displays such open violence in the streets, even worse atrocities occur behind prison walls,» he said. «I can only imagine that this time all detainees will face similarly brutal treatment.»
For Madadzadeh, the danger is immediate.
«The world must respond decisively to this brutality,» she said. «Every minute of delay costs lives.»
She called for concrete international action.
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Demonstrators burn pictures of Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei outside the Iranian embassy during a rally in support of nationwide protests in Iran, in London, Jan. 12, 2026. (Toby Melville/Reuters)
«Force the regime to allow independent visits to prisons and to the secret detention centers run by the IRGC and the Ministry of Intelligence,» Madadzadeh said. «Lives depend on it.»
Together, their testimonies paint a stark picture of Iran’s prisons as the hidden front line of repression and a warning that what remains unseen may be even more deadly than what is already visible in the streets.
iran,world protests,middle east,ali khamenei,middle east foreign policy,foreign policy
INTERNACIONAL
Una madre le inventaba enfermedades a su hijo, lo obligaba a usar silla de ruedas y hasta lo sometió a cirugías innecesarias
La policía del condado de Tarrant, Texas, detuvo a Kaitlyn Rose Laura, una mujer de 31 años acusada de someter a su hijo de tres años a procedimientos médicos innecesarios, incluyendo la colocación quirúrgica de una sonda de alimentación que el menor no necesitaba.
La investigación, que se extendió entre 2022 y 2026, reveló un caso estremecedor de abuso infantil médico, conocido como Síndrome de Munchausen.
Según los documentos judiciales, Laura inventó síntomas y enfermedades para su hijo, como convulsiones, trastornos graves y hasta parálisis cerebral, que los médicos descartaron tras múltiples estudios.
Cómo se destapó el caso
El escándalo salió a la luz cuando el personal médico del Cook Children’s Medical Center alertó a las autoridades sobre la posibilidad de que el niño estuviera siendo víctima de abuso.
Según una declaración jurada de arresto obtenida por The Dallas Morning News , CBS News y NBC 5 Dallas–Fort Worth, Laura afirmó ante el equipo de gastroenterología del Cook Children’s Medical Center en Fort Worth que su hijo tenía “problemas para comer”.
Kaitlyn Rose Laura fue detenida y acusada de maltrato. (Foto: gentileza People).
Los profesionales notaron que, cuando el menor estuvo internado sin la presencia de su madre, pudo comer y beber normalmente, sin mostrar ninguno de los síntomas que Laura describía.
Además, intentó ponerse de pie mientras su madre insistía en que usara una silla de ruedas, según informó The Dallas Morning News .
A pesar de las advertencias, la mujer continuó buscando tratamientos innecesarios en otros hospitales. El calvario del niño incluyó la colocación de una nueva sonda y la insistencia de Laura en que necesitaba nutrición intravenosa y hasta cuidados paliativos.
Según The Dallas Morning News, el presunto maltrato médico del niño fue denunciado por primera vez a los Servicios de Protección Infantil en junio de 2025, después de que los médicos determinaran que las afecciones médicas que Laura afirmaba que tenía su hijo eran falsas o exageradas, y que sus tratamientos eran innecesarios. Kaitlyn Rose Laura sometió a su hijo a decenas de procedimientos inútiles. (Foto: gentileza El Heraldo).
Además, una maestra también denunció a la mujer en octubre de 2025. La educadora afirmó que el niño comía alimentos sólidos y “se desplazaba por el campus de forma independiente sin usar su andador ni su silla de ruedas”.
Finalmente, en febrero de 2026, el menor fue retirado de la custodia de su madre y trasladado a una familia de acogida, donde, según las autoridades, comenzó a recuperarse.
Las acusaciones y el trasfondo
Laura fue arrestada el 25 de marzo por el Departamento del Sheriff del condado de Tarrant y enfrenta cargos por lesiones graves a un menor. La fianza total fue de 125.000 dólares, que pagó para recuperar la libertad el 31 de marzo.
El sheriff Bill Waybourn calificó el caso como “un crimen horroroso” y aseguró que la mujer actuó de manera “malvada y tortuosa” con su hijo. “Ese bebé fue cortado, le pusieron tubos, le dieron drogas y narcóticos que no necesitaba”, sostuvo Waybourn, quien también confirmó que el niño “está floreciendo” con su nueva familia.
“Esta persona narcisista, que busca el placer de obtener compasión por tener un hijo frágil, es lo que vemos desarrollarse ante nuestros ojos”, dijo el sheriff sobre la mujer.
Además de los cargos por abuso, la investigación apunta a un posible fraude a Medicaid y a la existencia de al menos tres cuentas de GoFundMe creadas por Laura para recaudar dinero con las enfermedades inventadas de su hijo.
La policía solicita ahora a cualquier persona que haya donado fondos a Laura, o que haya intercambiado mensajes de texto con ella sobre la salud de su hijo, que se comunique
Qué es el Síndrome de Munchausen por poder
El Síndrome de Munchausen por poder —actualmente denominado Trastorno Facticio impuesto a otro— es una forma de abuso en la que un cuidador, generalmente un padre o madre, fabrica o provoca síntomas físicos o psicológicos en un menor para obtener atención, compasión o validación de médicos y la comunidad.
Este tipo de casos son difíciles de detectar porque el abusador suele mostrarse como un padre extremadamente dedicado y conocedor de temas médicos, lo que puede llevar a que el sistema judicial y sanitario pase por alto el abuso durante años.
Entre las señales de alerta, los investigadores destacan la creación de múltiples campañas de recaudación de fondos en línea y la insistencia en tratamientos médicos complejos sin justificación clínica.
Estados Unidos
INTERNACIONAL
US embassies in Bahrain, Egypt issue warnings as Iran threatens universities across Middle East
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The U.S. Embassy in Bahrain told American citizens in the country to shelter in place on Tuesday, as the embassy in Egypt issued its own caution to Americans amid threats that Iran and its terror proxies may try to target American universities across the Middle East.
The embassy in Manama directed all U.S. government employees, along with all other Americans in the country, to shelter in a secure structure and stay away from windows until further notice.
«Iran and its aligned terrorist militias may intend to target American universities in Bahrain,» the embassy said. «Iran has specifically threatened American universities across the Middle East.»
The embassy provided instructions to those Americans who wish to leave the Middle East.
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A general view shows people crowding the Central Market for shopping during the final days of Ramadan in Manama, Bahrain, on March 18, 2026. (Ayman Yaqoob/Anadolu via Getty Images)
«If you want to leave the Middle East, the U.S. government is ready to assist by providing you the latest information about the departure options available,» it said.
A view of damage in Manama, Bahrain, after a kamikaze drone strike during Iran’s retaliatory attack on March 1, 2026. (Stringer/Anadolu/via Getty Images)
For those who wish to remain and shelter in place, the embassy reminded them to have a supply of food, water, medications and other essential items.
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«We urge all Americans to remain vigilant, follow local authorities’ instructions, and review the latest guidance from the U.S. Embassy or Consulate,» the embassy said.
The headquarters of the U.S. 5th Fleet in Manama, Bahrain. (Petty Officer 2nd Class Adelola Tinubu/U.S. Naval Forces Central Command/U.S. 5th Fleet )
Meanwhile, the U.S. Embassy in Cairo advised U.S. citizens to closely monitor the news for regional developments.
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«Egyptian authorities generally offer effective security protection,» the embassy said. «However, extremists and Iranian-aligned actors have expressed interest in planning and carrying out attacks in the region. Iran and its aligned terrorist militias may intend to target universities in the Middle East. Iran has specifically threatened American universities across the Middle East.
middle east, war with iran, iran, world
INTERNACIONAL
Vance says Iran has ‘2 pathways’ as 12-hour deadline looms, prays US on ‘God’s side’ in nixing nuclear threat
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Vice President JD Vance said that Iran has «two pathways» it can take regarding the conclusion of the war as President Donald Trump’s 12-hour deadline is looming Tuesday for the regime to reopen the Strait of Hormuz or face strikes on its power plants and bridges.
Vance, speaking in Hungary, also said he is praying that the United States is on «God’s side» in its pursuit to prevent Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon.
«There are two pathways that this thing is ultimately going to end. First of all, the United States has largely accomplished its military objectives,» Vance said. «There are still some things that we’d like to do, for example, on Iranian ability to manufacture weapons, that we’d like to do a little bit more work on militarily. But fundamentally, the military objectives of the United States have been completed.»
«I think there really are two pathways, and I’m oversimplifying this a little bit, but I think pathway one is where the Iranians decide they’re going to be a normal country. They’re not going to fund terrorism anymore. They’re going to be part of the world system of commerce and exchange,» Vance continued. «And that’s going to mean much better things for them economically. It’s going to mean better things for the peace and safety of the world. It’s going to mean a lot of good things for a lot of people all over the planet. That’s option A.»
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Vice President JD Vance holds a joint press conference with Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban in Budapest, Hungary, on Tuesday, April 7, 2026. (Jonathan Ernst/AP)
«Option B is that the Iranians don’t come to the table and they stay committed to terrorism, to terrorizing their neighbors, not just Israel but of course their Arab neighbors too. Then the economic situation in Iran is going to continue to be very, very bad. And frankly, it will probably get worse,» the vice president said.
«The president also has been very clear that while the Iranians are trying to exact as much economic cost through the Strait of Hormuz, the United States has the ability to extract much greater economic costs on Iran than Iran has an ability to extract costs on us or on our friends in the world,» Vance also said. «So I hope that they’re smart. The president has set a deadline for about 12 hours from now, and the United States, we’re going to find out. But there’s going to be a lot of negotiation between now and then, and I’m hopeful that it gets to a good resolution.»
HEGSETH TIES IRAN RESCUE TO EASTER STORY AND JESUS CHRIST: ‘A PILOT REBORN’
U.S. Air Force A-10 Thunderbolt II attack aircraft «have been used to strike Iranian naval vessels during Operation Epic Fury,» CENTCOM said Wednesday, March 25, 2026. (U.S. Central Command)
Vance told reporters Tuesday that his attitude toward military conflict has been to pray that «we are on God’s side.»
«We’re doing this because we don’t want a regime that has committed acts of terrorism to have the world’s most dangerous weapon. Because that would mean a lot of innocent people dead,» Vance said about the war. «I certainly hope that God agrees with the decision that Iran shouldn’t have a nuclear weapon, but I’ll keep praying about it.»
Vance also accused Iran of unleashing «acts of economic terrorism» that are obstructing the free flow of gas and oil around the world.
A satellite image shows the Strait of Hormuz, a key maritime passage connecting the Persian Gulf to the Gulf of Oman, vital for global energy supply. (Amanda Macias/Fox News Digital)
«So they’ve got to know, we’ve got tools in our toolkit that we so far haven’t decided to use. The president of the United States can decide to use them, and he will decide to use them if the Iranians don’t change their course of conduct,» he warned.
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Vance also confirmed Tuesday that «we were going to strike some military targets on Kharg Island» and «I believe we have done so.»
middle east, nuclear proliferation, war with iran, iran, jd vance
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