YEREVAN, MARCH 13, ARMENPRESS. 26 people have been killed and more than 4,360 injured in Iran during the year-end festival, Mehr News Agency reports.

Every year, authorities launch public awareness campaigns about the dangers of fireworks.

Iranians welcome the arrival of spring with a centuries-old custom called Chaharshanbeh-Suri, which is celebrated on the eve of the last Wednesday before the Iranian New Year holidays.

A week before Nowruz, the Iranian New Year, family members, and friends gather by bunches of open fires and keep them lit till dawn.

The annual festival dates back 2,500 years and has its roots in pre-Islamic Persia.