A massive fire broke out Saturday at Evin prison, the notorious detention facility in Iran’s capital where hundreds of dissidents and political prisoners are held, as anti-regime protests roiled the country for a fifth week. As the fire raged, the sounds of explosions and gunfire could be heard in the neighborhood near the prison, according to witnesses and videos posted to social media.
IRNA, the state news agency, reported that eight people had been injured in the fire, which it said started during clashes in a wing of the prison that housed those convicted of financial crimes.
Four "massive explosions” were heard after IRNA reported that the fire had been extinguished, according to Fars News Agency, an official outfit affiliated with the Revolutionary Guard.