At least three people have been killed during protests over economic hardship in Iran, local media reported on Thursday, as the most significant wave of unrest in the country since 2022 entered its fifth day.
Two people were killed in clashes on Thursday morning between police and armed protesters in Lordegan, in western Iran, the semi-official Fars news agency reported. It added that the situation there was currently “calm”.
Hengaw, a rights group monitoring violations in the country, also reported deaths in Lordegan, saying security forces had fired on protesters, killing and wounding several.
On Wednesday night, a member of a volunteer Basij paramilitary group was killed in riots in western Iran.
Amir-Hosam Khodayari Fard, 21, was killed after demonstrators threw stones in Kuhdasht, in Lorestan province, Tasnim news agency reported.
About a dozen members of law enforcement and the Basij were injured, the local deputy governor, Saeed Pour Ali, said. Twenty people were arrested.
The leader of the Lorestan Province Judiciary has ordered an investigation into the incident, according to Fars news agency.
The Basij is a volunteer force fiercely loyal to Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and affiliated with the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps.
The deaths mark an escalation in the unrest that has spread across the country since shopkeepers began protests in the capital Tehran on Sunday over inflation and the falling currency.
The protests gained momentum as students at 10 universities in the capital and other cities, including Iran's most prestigious institutions, joined in on Tuesday.
A government building in southern Iran was attacked on Wednesday, and the country's top prosecutor warned of a “decisive response” to any attempt to create instability after days of protests.
The government on Thursday repeated its call for dialogue in response to protests, a more conciliatory approach than during previous bouts of unrest. However, activists have also reported police flooding the streets.
Government spokeswoman Fatemeh Mohajerani said the authorities would hold a direct dialogue with representatives of trade unions and merchants, without giving details.
President Masoud Pezeshkian said he had asked the Interior Minister to listen to the demonstrators' “legitimate demands”.
The activist HRANA news agency said late on Wednesday that there was a heavy security force presence in cities, with arrests, shooting and clashes in some areas. State media said students were detained during demonstrations and later released.
In recent years, authorities have used force and extensive arrests to curb protests over issues ranging from high prices, drought, women's rights and political freedom.
Iran's economy has been struggling for years, with heavy US and international sanctions over Tehran's nuclear programme taking a severe toll. The currency, the rial, has plunged in recent months, losing more than a third of its value against the US dollar in 2025.
Last month, inflation stood at 52 per cent year on year, according to official statistics.
Some basic necessities are becoming unaffordable to a portion of the population, which has suffered the effects of sanctions against Iran for decades.
The latest demonstrations are not as widespread as the last major outbreak in 2022, sparked by the death in custody of Mahsa Amini, a young Kurdish Iranian woman.
She was arrested for allegedly breaching the strict dress code for women, and her death caused a wave of anger across the country.
Several hundred people were killed, including dozens of members of the security forces.
There were also widespread protests in 2019, caused by a sharp increase in the price of petrol.
