In Iran, voting is underway in parliamentary elections.

State television showed the Islamic republic's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei casting the first ballot in Tehran. Khamenei called on all Iranians to take part in the election saying that doing so would guarantee the country's national interests.

Nearly 58 million people are eligible to vote for 290 seats across 31 provinces.The 11th parliamentary election since the 1979 Islamic Revolution comes after steeply escalating tensions between Iran and the United States and the accidental downing of a Ukrainian airliner that sparked anti-government protests.

Iran has been hit by an economic slump and high inflation following harsh US sanctions after President Donald Trump pulled out of a landmark nuclear deal with Tehran in 2018.