A member of Iran’s security forces was killed during clashes on Thursday, marking a fourth day of escalating protests sparked by a severe currency crisis, according to Iranian news agencies and verified footage.

The semi-official Fars news agency, citing regional official Said Pourali, reported that a 21-year-old member of the Basij paramilitary force was killed during a confrontation in the western city of Koohdasht, in Lorestan province. The report stated that thirteen police and Basij members were also injured by stone-throwing protesters.

Footage verified by BBC Persian appears to show security forces firing at protesters in Koohdasht on the same day, though the circumstances of the shooting remain unclear.

The unrest, which began in Tehran on Sunday among market traders angered by the Iranian rial’s sharp decline against the US dollar, has since spread to multiple provinces. On Thursday, confrontations were reported in the southern province of Fars and the western provinces of Hamedan and Lorestan.

In the southern city of Fasa, protesters attempted to break into a local government building. Officials reported three police officers injured and four arrests. Verified social media video showed a crowd breaking the gate of the governor’s office, followed by security personnel firing shots and deploying tear gas, which clouded streets lined with shuttered shops.

In an apparent effort to quell the unrest, authorities declared Wednesday a sudden bank holiday, and schools, universities, and public institutions were closed across the country on Thursday. The government cited energy savings due to cold weather, but many Iranians viewed the move as an attempt to curb protest momentum.

The protests represent the most widespread public dissent since the 2022 uprising triggered by the death in custody of Mahsa Amini, though current demonstrations have not yet reached the same national scale.

Security has been tightened in key areas of Tehran where the protests originated. President Masoud Pezeshkian stated that his government would listen to the "legitimate demands" of the protesters. However, Prosecutor General Mohammad Movahedi-Azad issued a simultaneous warning, saying any attempt to create instability would be met with a "decisive response."