As a result of clashes in Lordegan, two protesters were shot dead by government forces, according to information from Hengaw. One person was also reported dead in Kuhdasht, and Fars mentions three fatalities in Azna, located in Lorestan province.
Protests began on Wednesday against the backdrop of a sharp drop in the national currency's value, when the Iranian rial lost half its value against the US dollar, leading to rising prices. Initially, shop owners began to protest against the government's actions, soon joined by students. Reuters describes these events as the largest protests in the Islamic Republic in the past three years.
The day before, the Iranian government announced a day off due to the need to conserve energy in cold weather. The next day, Fatemeh Mohajerani, a government representative, stated the intention to hold direct negotiations with trade unions, although details were not specified.
