Updated

Iran's semi-official ISNA news agency says people have been detained following protests in a major city over price hikes.

The report Thursday quotes the governor of the northeastern city of Mashhad, Mohammad Rahim Norouzian, as saying police have arrested a number of people who intended to destroy public property during the illegal gathering, without elaborating.

It was not immediately clear how many people took part in the protest, but accounts on Iranian social media suggested as many as several thousand people in at least three other cities held similar rallies.

The economy has improved since the landmark 2015 nuclear deal lifted sanctions, but the effects have yet to trickle down to many ordinary Iranians. The prices of many basic goods, including eggs, have increased by 30-40 percent in recent days.