At least 9 killed as Iran protests spread over woman's death

According to a tally by The Associated Press, at least nine people have been killed since the violence erupted over the weekend in Iran.

The scope of Iran's ongoing unrest, the worst in several years, still isn't clear as protesters in at least a dozen cities continue to encounter security and paramilitary forces.

Netblocks said that Iran's biggest telecom operator shut down mobile internet access again Thursday to prevent protests from spreading.

An anchor on Iran's state television said the death toll from the protests could be as high as 17 on Thursday, but did not say how he reached that figure. 17 people and police officers were killed at the scene of the events.

In a country where radio and television stations already are state-controlled and journalists regularly face the threat of arrest, the Revolutionary Guard urged the judiciary to prosecute people who spread fake news on social media. Protesters are using the social media sites as a way to communicate.

The death of a young woman held by the country's morality police for allegedly violating its dress code started the demonstrations in Iran. The European Union and the United Nations condemned her death.

The police say she died of a heart attack but her family doubts that. There were reports that she was severely beaten by the morality police.

The protests have grown in the last five days into an open challenge to the government with women removing and burning their headscarves in the streets.

In the protests, the cry has been "death to the dictator!"

There have been demonstrations at universities in Tehran and Kermanshah. The unrest is different from previous rounds of nationwide protests caused by pocketbook issues.

Workers in Iran's towns took to the streets over the government's gasoline price hike. Human rights groups say hundreds were killed as security forces cracked down.

The state-run media in Iran reported demonstrations in at least 13 cities. Security forces use tear gas and water canons to break up a protest. The officers beat the protesters with batons.

A young man is bleeding out in the street after being shot by security forces during a protest in Tabriz.

The AP count is based on statements from Iran's state-run and semi official media. The Guard blamed Iran's enemies for the unrest.

Four people were killed by live fire in Amini's home province of Kurdistan. The prosecutor in Kermanshah insisted that the bullets were not fired by the security forces.

Security forces appear to have been the target of some demonstrators. Three men affiliated with the Basij, a volunteer force under the Guard, were killed in the city of Tabriz, bringing the death toll to nine on both sides.

At least eight people, including a woman and a boy, have been killed in the clashes, according to the independent experts with the U.N.

A trail of destruction has been left by the confrontations. Rouhollah Solgi, the deputy governor, said that angry crowds damaged or set fire to over 40 government properties in the north.

Iran has grappled with waves of protests in the recent past, mainly over a long-running economic crisis. The citizens blame government corruption and mismanagement for the high prices of basic goods in Iran.

The 2015 Iran nuclear accord, in which Iran curbed its nuclear activities in exchange for sanctions relief, has been stuck in the mud for months.

Christiane Amanpour, CNN's chief international anchor, had planned to confront Raisi about the protests roiling Iran in what would be his first U.S.-

Raisi didn't show up for the interview when it was due to start. The president wouldn't take part unless she wore a headscarf. Her account was not acknowledged by the Iranian government.

The British-Iranian anchor wrote that he couldn't agree to the unusual condition.

It would have been important to speak with President Raisi as the protests continued in Iran.