Turkish Airlines has cancelled all five of its scheduled Friday flights to Tehran, the Iranian capital, amid widespread protests triggered by rising living costs, according to information obtained from the Istanbul Airport application.

The airport application also indicated that five additional flights operated by Iranian airlines were cancelled, while seven other flights to Tehran remained listed as scheduled.

Turkish authorities have yet to issue an official comment on the situation in Iran, where protesters have openly challenged the country’s leadership under Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

Iran has been grappling with a deepening economic crisis following years of international sanctions, compounded by the impact of the June war with Israel, which has further strained the country’s economy.

Human rights organisations have accused Iranian security forces of using live ammunition against demonstrators during the unrest.

The Norway-based non-governmental organisation, Iran Human Rights, said on Thursday that security forces had killed at least 45 protesters since the demonstrations began, including eight minors.

According to the specialist aviation tracking website Flight Radar, a Turkish Airlines aircraft en route to Shiraz and a Pegasus Airlines flight bound for Mashad were forced to turn back after entering Iranian airspace on Thursday night.

Turkey shares a border of approximately 500 kilometres, or 300 miles, with Iran, and there are three active land border crossings currently operating between the two countries.