Iranian authorities have increased internal security controls across the country, particularly in Tehran, amid ongoing tensions related to the United States-Israel conflict with Iran. Over recent weeks, security forces and the religious morality police have stepped up restrictions, arrests, and punishments targeting individuals and businesses deemed noncompliant with state-imposed regulations on morality and Islamic norms.

Officials from clerical, political, and military-security sectors have called for unity against foreign aggression while showing reduced tolerance for dissent or non-compliance. The morality police have enforced compulsory hijab rules, closed businesses, and pressured students, lawyers, and others.

Human rights concerns have grown due to executions and arrests. Two young men have been executed in a recent case, with a third spared temporarily after a stroke but still at risk, according to the US-based Human Rights Activists News Agency. On August 5th, 2026, United Nations human rights chief Volker Turk stated that at least 56 people have been executed on national security-related charges since March 19, including 27 linked to nationwide protests in January.

The UN and international human rights organizations have called for a halt to these executions. The Oslo-based Iran Human Rights NGO reported a 68 percent increase in executions in 2025, with over 1,600 people executed—the highest number since 1989, shortly after the Iran-Iraq War when many dissidents were executed.

Some individuals have been punished for not adhering to “Islamic norms,” which includes failure to observe compulsory dress codes involving head coverings and modest clothing, laws established shortly after Iran’s 1979 revolution. Additionally, closures of public gathering spaces have further alarmed Iranians and rights groups.

A recent US strike on Iran’s Qeshm Island resulted in the death of a family, with funerals held amid the heightened tensions.

Sources