Several people were 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, saying security forces had fired on protesters, killing and wounding several of them.

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 a significant escalation in the unrest that has spread across Iran 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.

Hengaw reported that a protester was shot dead on Wednesday in Isfahan province in central Iran.

Reuters could not immediately verify any of those reports.

Protests also took place on Thursday in Marvdasht in the southern Fars province, the activist news site HRANA reported. Hengaw said demonstrators had been detained on Wednesday in the western provinces of Kermanshah, Khuzestan and Hamedan.

Critical moment for clerical rulers

The unrest comes at a critical moment for Iran's clerical rulers as Western sanctions hammer an economy hit by 40% inflation and after Israeli and US airstrikes in June targeted the country's nuclear infrastructure and military leadership.

Tehran has responded to the unrest with an offer of dialogue, an apparently conciliatory gesture alongside its security response.

Government spokesperson Fatemeh Mohajerani said on Thursday that the authorities would hold a direct dialogue with representatives of trades unions and merchants, but without giving details.

HRANA said late on Wednesday there was a heavy presence of security forces in cities, with arrests, shootings and clashes in some areas. State media said students were detained then released during the demonstrations.

Many Iranian social media users disputed the authorities' account of the death of a Basij paramilitary member overnight. A video widely shared online that Reuters could not immediately verify appeared to show protesters trying to get an injured person into an ambulance.

The Basij is a volunteer paramilitary force loyal to Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. It is affiliated with the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps, which on Thursday accused those involved in the unrest in Kuhdasht of "taking advantage of the atmosphere of popular protests".

Govt shutdown

Merchants, shop owners and students in a number of Iranian universities have been demonstrating for days and closing major bazaars. The government shut down much of the country on Wednesday by declaring a holiday due to cold weather.

Authorities have in recent years quashed protests over issues ranging from high prices, droughts, women's rights and political freedoms, often with tough security measures and extensive arrests.

However, President Masoud Pezeshkian has said he had asked the interior minister to listen to "legitimate demands" of the demonstrators.

Iran's economy has been struggling for years as a result of US and Western sanctions over Tehran's nuclear program. Regional tensions led to a 12-day air war with Israel in June, further straining the country's finances.

The Iranian rial lost around half its value against the dollar in 2025, with inflation reaching 42.5% in December.