<p> An Iranian official in the region said on Sunday the authorities had verified at least 5,000 people had been killed in protests in <a href="https://www.deccanherald.com/tags/iran">Iran</a>, including about 500 security personnel, blaming "terrorists and armed rioters" for killing "innocent Iranians".</p><p>The official, who declined to be named due to the sensitivity of the issue, also told <em>Reuters</em> some of the heaviest clashes and highest number of deaths were in the Iranian Kurdish areas in northwest Iran, a region where Kurdish separatists have been active and where flare-ups have been among the most violent in past periods of unrest.</p>.Tamil Nadu Congress leaders meet party High Command; told not to create confusion about alliance with DMK.<p>"The final toll is not expected to increase sharply," the official said, adding that "Israel and armed groups abroad" had supported and equipped those taking to the streets.</p><p>The Iranians authorities regularly blame unrest on foreign enemies, including Israel, an arch foe of the Islamic Republic which launched military strikes on Iran in June.</p><p>The US-based HRANA rights group said on Saturday the death toll had reached 3,308, with another 4,382 cases under review. The group said it had confirmed more than 24,000 arrests.</p><p>The Iranian Kurdish rights group Hengaw, based in Norway, has said some of the heaviest clashes during protests that erupted in late December were in Kurdish areas in the northwest.</p>
<p> An Iranian official in the region said on Sunday the authorities had verified at least 5,000 people had been killed in protests in <a href="https://www.deccanherald.com/tags/iran">Iran</a>, including about 500 security personnel, blaming "terrorists and armed rioters" for killing "innocent Iranians".</p><p>The official, who declined to be named due to the sensitivity of the issue, also told <em>Reuters</em> some of the heaviest clashes and highest number of deaths were in the Iranian Kurdish areas in northwest Iran, a region where Kurdish separatists have been active and where flare-ups have been among the most violent in past periods of unrest.</p>.Tamil Nadu Congress leaders meet party High Command; told not to create confusion about alliance with DMK.<p>"The final toll is not expected to increase sharply," the official said, adding that "Israel and armed groups abroad" had supported and equipped those taking to the streets.</p><p>The Iranians authorities regularly blame unrest on foreign enemies, including Israel, an arch foe of the Islamic Republic which launched military strikes on Iran in June.</p><p>The US-based HRANA rights group said on Saturday the death toll had reached 3,308, with another 4,382 cases under review. The group said it had confirmed more than 24,000 arrests.</p><p>The Iranian Kurdish rights group Hengaw, based in Norway, has said some of the heaviest clashes during protests that erupted in late December were in Kurdish areas in the northwest.</p>