Expensive food protests in Iran: Angry citizens demand government resignation
According to unofficial information, at least four people were killed in protests across Iran over the reduction of state food subsidies, which turned into political ones with the protesters' demands for a change of government, Reuters reported.
According to the news agency, citing video posts on social media, protesters chanted slogans demanding that President Ibrahim Raisi step down.
The protests were sparked last week by cuts in state subsidies for imported wheat, which pushed up prices by as much as 300 per cent for various basic flour products. The government of President Ebrahim Raisi has also increased prices for basic products such as cooking oil and dairy products.
The northern city of Rasht, the central city of Farsan and the northeastern city of Neyshabur are among the areas affected by the protests, according to videos posted on social media.
"Raisi, shame, let go of the country!" Protesters chanted in one such video.
In the meantime, Reuters could not independently verify the authenticity of the videos.
Local lawmaker Ahmad Awai told the semi-official ILNA news agency that one person had been killed during a rally in Dezful, a city in the southwestern oil-producing province of Khuzestan.