Payam Javan: According to Amnesty International, Iranian intelligence and security forces have been torturing children as young as 12 to deter them from participating in nationwide protests. The torture methods include beatings, floggings, electric shocks, rape, and other forms of sexual violence.

Amnesty International has recorded the cases of seven children and gathered testimony from 19 eyewitnesses, including two lawyers and 17 adult detainees who were kept with minors.

The organization estimates that thousands of children could have been detained during the protests.

Iranian authorities have acknowledged that more than 22,000 individuals have been imprisoned in connection with the protests. Inhumane detention circumstances were also used to hold children, including extreme overcrowding, limited access to restrooms and showers, lack of food and drinkable water, exposure to extreme cold, and extended solitary confinement. Children were also denied access to proper medical care, even for injuries brought on by torture.