Iran’s Counter-Terror Special Forces (NOPO)
" The LEF Special Units were one of the main security forces on the ground in November 2019, alongside units of Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) and Iran’s Basij Resistance Force (Basij), a paramilitary force subordinate to the IRGC. In multiple locations throughout Iran, LEF Special Units forces, along with those of a subunit, Iran’s Counter-Terror Special Forces (NOPO), used excessive and lethal force, firing upon unarmed protestors, including women and children, with automatic weapons. NOPO forces blocked main streets with armed vehicles and fired randomly at crowds with heavy machine guns." 1
"The Iranian Special Police Forces (NOPO) are a subdivision of Iran’s Special Unit Forces and the Law Enforcement Forces of the Islamic Republic of Iran (LEF). NOPO is a highly trained, specialised unit often called upon to dissolve protests. During the 2022 protests following the death of 22-year-old Mahsa Amini, NOPO used excessive violence and lethal force against unarmed protestors, including women and children, e.g. by firing automatic weapons at protestors. The Iranian Special Police Forces (NOPO) are therefore responsible for serious human rights violations in Iran."2
Source: