Amnesty International has accused the Iranian government of overseeing a campaign of human rights abuses during a crackdown last year on nationwide protests that were sparked by soaring fuel prices.
The rights group said in a report released Wednesday that Iran resorted to torture, rape and "other ill-treatment" of those involved in the November unrest that rocked the Islamic Republic.
Iranian officials said about 200,000 people participated in the protests, while the chair of parliament's security committee estimated at least 7,000 were arrested and rights groups said the number of detainees was in the thousands.
Amnesty's report said children as young as 10 years of age were among the peaceful protesters arrested, citing what it said were credible reports from witnesses, relatives of victims, verified videos and human rights activists. The judiciary said in January that most of those arrested had been released.
The report also said Iranian security forces killed 304 children, women and men during the protests, but that the actual death toll was probably "much higher."
Iranian authorities said 225 people were killed and that members of the security forces were among the fatalities. The Reuters news agency reported in December that Iranian officials said there were 1,500 deaths.
The report alleges that detainees who were on trial "suffered unfair judicial proceedings" when Iranian authorities allegedly used torture to force confessions and denied them access to legal representation. Dozens of the protesters were sentenced to lengthy prison terms.
Iranian officials did not immediately respond to the allegations in the report.
The protests over rising fuel prices evolved into a largely political campaign when thousands of primarily working-class demonstrators called for the ouster of senior government officials.
