At least two members of the security forces were killed and 30 others were wounded as armed protesters opened fire during clashes in Lordegan city in Iran's Chaharmahal and Bakhtiari province, Iranian media reported.
Nationwide protests over economic grievances have entered their 11th day in parts of Iran, with the latest demonstrations reported in Lordegan and Bojnord in the northeastern province of North Khorasan.
According to Iran’s Fars news agency, the unrest began when around 300 shopkeepers closed their businesses at about 10pm on Wednesday and gathered in several streets near the Khardoun neighbourhood and Shirouni Bridge, chanting slogans.
Authorities said tensions escalated after certain individuals infiltrated the gathering and provoked clashes with police. During the confrontation, some protesters allegedly pelted security personnel with stones.
Fars reported that armed individuals within the crowd opened fire on police using "various military-grade and hunting weapons", leaving two dead and at least 30 others injured.
The report added that demonstrators also vandalised the governor’s office and several other administrative buildings in Lordegan during the clashes.
Separately, a shop was set on fire in the city of Bojnord in Iran's northeastern border province of North Khorasan, while a civilian's vehicle was narrowly saved from being torched by protesters, Iranian officials said.
Furthermore, a pro-government demonstration was held in Iran's western province of Hamedan, where participants chanted slogans against economic pressure on the country.
Protesters were seen carrying posters of Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and Iran’s national flag, while also staging a protest against Israel.
The demonstrators expressed strong opposition to what they described as attempts to spread violence, insecurity and chaos within the country.
According to videos published by rights groups on social media, new protests took place at different points across the country on Wednesday, with streets thronged with protesters in some cases.
Norway-based rights group IHR published a video of people massing in the streets of Bojnurd in the north-east of the country, shouting slogans including “an Iranian can die but will not accept humiliation”.
The Tasnim news agency reported that rioters had attacked a mosque and a shop selling religious books.
Another protest was reported in the upscale Shemiran district of Tehran, with protesters shouting “death to the dictator” and “freedom”, IHR said.
The US-based HRANA group posted a video of a crowd demonstrating in the Gulf port of Bandar Abbas, with people shouting slogans including “don’t be spectators, join us” and “this is the final battle, Pahlavi will come back”, referring to the dynasty of the deposed shah.
Large numbers of protesters also took to the streets in Aligudarz in western Iran, with people chanting slogans including “this is the year of blood, Seyyed Ali will be toppled” in reference to Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, according to footage broadcast by the Iran International channel, which is based outside the country.
Iran’s Fars news agency, meanwhile, reported deadly clashes in the country’s south-west that killed two people and wounded 30.
Fars said that shopkeepers were protesting in Lordergan when “rioters began throwing stones at the police”.
“Among them, there were individuals with military and hunting weapons who suddenly opened fire on the police,” the agency added.
It said the two dead were police officers.
Nationwide, protests have spread to 25 of Iran’s 31 provinces, according to an AFP tally based on official statements and local media.
In a video released by the news agency Mehr after a cabinet meeting, Vice President Mohammad Jafar Ghaempanah said Pezeshkian had “ordered that no security measures be taken against the demonstrators”.
“Those who carry firearms, knives and machetes and who attack police stations and military sites are rioters, and we must distinguish protesters from rioters,” Ghaempanah added.
Security forces have now killed at least 27 protesters, including five people under the age of 18, the Norway-based NGO Iran Human Rights (IHR) said on Tuesday.
Iranian media outlets, relaying official announcements, have reported 15 deaths, including members of the security forces and a policeman who was shot dead on Tuesday.
