The growing protests against the economic crisis in Iran spread on Thursday, 1st, to the country’s rural provinces. At least seven protesters died in clashes with security forces, according to authorities.
The deaths could mark the beginning of a more forceful response by the Iranian theocracy to the protests, which have subsided in Tehran but expanded elsewhere. The victims are from four cities predominantly inhabited by the Lur ethnic group.
The most intense clashes occurred in Azna, in the Province of Lorestã. Videos posted on social media show fires in the streets and the sounds of gunshots.
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In videos recorded in Lordegan, Chaharmahal and Bakhtiari Province, gunshots can also be heard in the background. Source: Associated Press*.
