PARIS, June 21, 2025 (AFP) - A US-based NGO said Friday that Israel's strikes against Iran have killed at least 657 people including civilians and members of the security forces, a toll based on sources and reports in Iran.

The Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA) said that at least 263 civilians had been killed nationwide since Israel began its strikes on June 13.

Among these, it said it had verified the identities of more than 20 children who have been killed, mostly in Tehran.

It added that 164 members of the military had also been killed.

The overall death toll includes 230 people who HRANA was unable to determine whether they were civilians or members of the security forces.

More than 2,000 members of the security forces and civilians had been wounded as of early Friday, it added.

The group said strikes had taken place in 21 of Iran's 31 provinces.

HRANA is part of the Human Rights Activists NGO, which was set up inside Iran in 2005 but later shifted to the United States in the face of repression from the Iranian authorities.

It publishes dozens of reports a day, outlining human rights violations inside Iran.

Israel said its campaign was aimed at halting Tehran from obtaining an atomic bomb, an ambition Iran denies having.

Iranian authorities said Sunday that Israeli strikes had killed at least 224 people, including military commanders, nuclear scientists and civilians. It has not issued an updated toll since then.

Iranian strikes launched in response have also caused damage in Israel, where at least 25 people have been killed and hundreds wounded, according to the authorities.