Gunmen attack bazaar in Iran, kill 5

Security forces in a Tehran metro on Nov 16 as passengers hide after they allegedly fired tear gas on protesters. Pic/AFP

Gunmen opened fire in a bazaar in the southwestern Iranian city of Izeh on Wednesday, killing at least five people, including a young girl, and wounding civilians and security forces, state TV reported. In a separate attack, gunmen shot dead two members of Iran's paramilitary Basij in the central city of Isfahan, according to the state-run IRNA news agency. In both attacks, the gunmen were reportedly riding motorcycles.

It was not immediately clear what motivated the attacks or if they were linked to the nationwide protests that have convulsed Iran over the past two months. Another 10 people, including security forces, were wounded in the shooting in Izeh, according to state TV. Valiollah Hayati, deputy governor of the Khuzestan province, where the Izeh is located, told state TV that a young girl and a woman were among those killed.

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State TV said that groups of dozens of protesters had gathered in parts of Izeh late on Wednesday, chanting anti-government slogans and hurling rocks at police, who fired tear gas to disperse them. State-linked media also reported someone set fire to a Shiite religious seminary. Violence has erupted around some protests as security forces clamped down on dissent.

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