Huge explosion in western Iran as gunfight clamps gas station; 1 killed

Iran's state TV says gunmen have killed a policeman and wounded a police officer in a shootout in which a stray bullet hit a fuel tanker, causing it to explode. It said Wednesday that the shootout erupted near a gas station in the western province of Lurestan. It says the explosion shattered the windows of a nearby building.

State TV says the wounded police lieutenant is in "satisfactory" condition after being transferred to a local hospital. It says the assailants fled in a stolen car. It was unclear what sparked the shootout.

Heavily rural Lurestan has seen occasional tribal-related armed clashes. Many people in the area keep private firearms. In November, authorities confiscated some 150 guns from smugglers in the province.

(With inputs from agencies.)