Dawn
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15:19 Jan 01, 2026
Several people were reportedly killed during unrest in Iran on Thursday, an Iranian news agency and a rights group reported, as the biggest protests to hit the country for three years over soaring inflation sparked violence in several provinces. The semi-official Fars news agency cited a “source with knowledge” as saying several people were killed in clashes on Thursday morning between police and what it said were armed protesters in Lordegan in western Iran. The rights group, Hengaw, also reported deaths in Lordegan. Violence reported in several cities Thursday’s clashes in Lordegan, along with reported deaths of a security services member overnight and another protester on Wednesday, mark an escalation in the unrest since shopkeepers began protesting on Sunday. The Revolutionary Guards said on Thursday morning a member of its affiliated Basij volunteer paramilitary unit had been killed in the western city of Kuhdasht, naming him as Amirhossam Khodayari Fard. Thirteen other militiamen were wounded, it added....