At least 4,500 people have been killed in Iran since the outbreak of protests at the end of December, activists said on Wednesday, as new figures emerged from the U.S.-based Human Rights Activists News Agency.

The group said it had so far verified 4,519 deaths, with more than 9,000 additional cases still under investigation.

Those killed included 4,251 demonstrators and 197 security forces, HRANA said.

Iran’s internet shutdown remained in place, with only limited images slowly emerging that were beginning to reveal the full scale of the violent crackdown on the mass protests on January 8 and 9.

In their report, activists pointed to disturbing footage analysed by medical professionals, who said that some of the demonstrators who were killed had previously received medical treatment.

The presence of medical equipment such as catheters and breathing tubes on bodies found outside medical settings has raised suspicions that injured protesters died after treatment had begun.

It also said the deaths would have occurred after the injured persons were removed from medical facilities without any formal confirmation of death, according to the report.

Iran’s leadership has blamed what it described as “terrorist elements” as well as its arch-enemies, the United States and Israel, for the violence during the protests.

The claims, however, cannot be independently verified, partly due to the ongoing communications blackout.

(dpa/NAN)