Washington Conference Exposes January 2026 Iran Uprising Massacre

A major press conference held in Washington, D.C. on Tuesday shed new light on what organisers described as a large-scale massacre during the January 2026 uprising in Iran, while also outlining a detailed roadmap for a democratic transition after the fall of the ruling system.

The event was organised by the National Council of Resistance of Iran U.S. Representative Office and brought together journalists, think-tank researchers and members of the diplomatic community. It focused on presenting newly documented evidence of the January crackdown and promoting the opposition’s vision for a post-regime Iran.

Opening the conference, Soona Samsami, the NCRI’s representative in Washington, said Iran is facing a decisive turning point that will shape not only the country’s future but also regional stability. She traced the origins of the uprising to protests that erupted on December 28, 2025, initially driven by economic collapse, soaring inflation, currency devaluation, unemployment and shortages of basic services.

According to Samsami, the protests rapidly evolved into a nationwide political movement calling for the overthrow of dictatorship, spreading within days to hundreds of cities and towns. She highlighted the participation of merchants, students, teachers, women, youth and ethnic minorities, describing the involvement of Tehran’s Grand Bazaar as evidence of a deep crisis within the ruling system.

She said the authorities responded with unprecedented force, transferring command of repression from the police to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, imposing near-martial-law conditions, shutting down internet and mobile communications nationwide, and using live ammunition, snipers, armoured vehicles and heavy weapons against unarmed civilians. Thousands were killed, tens of thousands wounded and more than 50,000 arrested, she said, adding that the uprising continued in new forms despite the crackdown.

Samsami stressed that the central issue now facing Iran is not whether the current system will fall, but what will replace it and how chaos can be avoided. Citing remarks by Maryam Rajavi, she said regime change would come through the Iranian people themselves and an organised resistance, not foreign military intervention or internal power struggles. She identified the People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran and its internal “Resistance Units” as the core of that organised effort.

She also outlined the NCRI’s proposed transition plan, which includes the establishment of a temporary transitional government, free elections for a constituent assembly within six months, and a referendum on a new constitution. The plan is based on gender equality, separation of religion and state, abolition of the death penalty, judicial independence, political and media freedoms, recognition of ethnic rights, and a non-nuclear, peaceful republic.

The second main presentation was delivered by Alireza Jafarzadeh, Deputy Representative of the NCRI in Washington, who detailed the findings of an NCRI-US report based largely on information from inside Iran. He described the January events as a mass killing unprecedented in modern Iranian history, carried out following direct orders from Ali Khamenei and executed by the IRGC.

Jafarzadeh said the NCRI has so far identified 2,257 people killed, including 152 children and 245 women, while the real toll is believed to be far higher. He cited what he described as top-secret documents from the Supreme National Security Council, the Interior Ministry and the IRGC, showing that the authorities had prepared since 2021 for such an uprising and gradually authorised the use of lethal force and nationwide communication shutdowns.

He added that protests spread to more than 400 cities and over 1,000 locations nationwide, with demonstrators briefly taking control of areas in several towns and cities. He stressed the prominent role of organised Resistance Units in sustaining protests and protecting demonstrators, citing cases of members killed while leading protests in January 2026.

In closing remarks, Jafarzadeh said the regime faces no viable path to survival amid worsening economic conditions and rising public anger. He called on the international community to support the Iranian people by increasing political and economic pressure on the authorities, pursuing accountability for crimes against humanity, and recognising the right of Iranians to resist repression.

The conference ended with an extensive question-and-answer session, during which speakers argued that the uprising has entered an irreversible phase and that a democratic alternative is already prepared, urging governments to align themselves with what they described as the will of the Iranian people.