Several arrests at protest over dying Iranian lake

Police in Iran have arrested several people at protests against the near disappearance of what was once the world's second largest salt lake.

Lake Urmia was Iran's main domestic tourism resort before it began shrinking in 1995 due to extreme drought, agriculture and dam building.

These days, hotels and boats lie abandoned, with no water in sight.

Many locals in the remote north west, where the lake is located, blame authorities for its disappearance.

"Lake Urmia is dying, parliament orders its killing," some protesters shouted at a small demonstration in the regional capital, also called Urmia, on Saturday - according to AFP citing local media.

The police chief in the region described the demonstrators as hostile and said they intended to disturb public security.