The death toll from protests across Iran has risen to at least 29, according to the US-based Human Rights Activists News Agency, as demonstrations driven by economic hardship continue to spread. Protesters gathered in central Tehran near the Grand Bazaar, where security forces used live ammunition and tear gas to disperse crowds, witnesses said.
One protester told The National that tear gas was fired inside a metro station, creating dangerous conditions in the enclosed space. “People couldn’t breathe,” the witness said, adding that children and non-protesters were also affected.
The rights group reported that four children and two members of the security forces were among those killed, with protests recorded in 27 of Iran’s 31 provinces. The unrest was triggered by the collapse of the Iranian rial and has since widened into broader political dissent amid heightened regional tensions.
