Iranian authorities have arrested 139 foreign nationals in connection with protests that began in late December, according to Iranian media reports.

“During the review of cases related to the rioters, it was determined that 139 of those arrested were foreigners,” Iran’s Tasnim news agency reported, citing Ahmad Negahban, the police chief of the central city of Yazd.

According to Negahban, those arrested were involved “in organizing, inciting, and carrying out riots,” and in some cases were in contact with networks abroad.

The demonstrations in Iran initially erupted on December 28 over the rising cost of living before evolving into a broader anti-government movement. The subsequent crackdown, according to non-governmental organizations, resulted in thousands of deaths.

Iranian authorities acknowledge that more than 3,000 people were killed during the unrest but claim that most of the victims were members of the security forces or civilians allegedly killed by “terrorists” acting on behalf of the United States and Israel.

On Sunday, the Iranian presidency released the names of 2,986 individuals killed in the riots, as part of a total list of 3,117 deaths.

Meanwhile, the US-based Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA) has reported that it has confirmed the deaths of 6,854 people, the majority of them protesters. Other human rights organizations argue that the actual death toll is significantly higher.