The United Kingdom has sanctioned senior Iranian security officials, as well as the country's notorious morality police, as a fourth week of protests over the death of a woman in custody saw further clashes with police.
The death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini in police custody last month has sparked protests across Iran and internationally, with demonstrators calling for the downfall of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
From Tehran and elsewhere, online videos have emerged despite authorities disrupting the Internet.
Video posted on social media on October 10 showed massive protests in the Western Iranian city of Sanandaj, with reports of clashes between demonstrators and security forces. Intense gunfire and explosions can be heard throughout the city.
SEE ALSO: Nika Shakarami's Mother Accuses Iranian Authorities Of 'Lying' About Daughter's DeathIn one video, which has not been independently verified, several armed officers can be seen beating a protester, sparking an outcry on social media. Another showed officers attacking a pregnant woman in the street and shooting and killing a driver in Sanandaj who honked his car horn as a sign of protest.
The Oslo-based group Iran Human Rights says at least 185 protesters have been killed by the security forces, including at least 19 children, as the protests entered their fourth week.
In response to the actions of security forces, the U.K. Foreign Office said in a statement on October 10 that it had sanctioned the morality police in its entirety, as well as both its chief, Mohammed Rostami Cheshmeh Gachi, and the head of the Tehran division, Haj Ahmed Mirzaei.
"The U.K. stands with the people of Iran who are bravely calling for accountability from their government and for their fundamental human rights to be respected," Foreign Secretary James Cleverly said in a statement.
"These sanctions send a clear message to the Iranian authorities: We will hold you to account for your repression of women and girls and for the shocking violence you have inflicted on your own people."
Authorities have not commented on the situation in Sanandaj, but in a speech on October 9 the chief commander of the army said that troops, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, and police forces have supported each other's efforts to quell the unrest and threatened that a "day of reckoning will come" for the protesters.