Iranian cop killed in clashes over fuel price hike

TEHRAN, Iran — An Iranian policeman died today after being shot in a clash with “rioters and thugs” during protests against petrol price hikes, state news agency IRNA reports.

Major Iraj Javaheri died of his wounds a day after a confrontation with armed attackers in the western city of Kermanshah on Saturday, provincial police chief Ali Akbar Javidan says, cited by IRNA.

The officer was “martyred in a confrontation with a number of rioters and thugs,” Javidan says. He suffered a gunshot wound while trying to defend his police station from the assailants who attempted to seize it, Javidan says.

It is the second confirmed death since protests erupted across Iran on Friday after the announcement of a decision to impose petrol price hikes and rationing.

“The people of Kermanshah, alongside people of other cities, peacefully protested the recent developments… and their concerns will certainly be heard,” says Javidan. “The majority of citizens do not approve of the chaos caused by some known individuals and clearly ask for confronting them,” the police chief adds.

One civilian was killed during demonstrations in the central city of Sirjan, the semi-official ISNA news agency reported yesterday, citing acting governor Mohammad Mahmoudabadi.

— AFP