Post #4740

Is the Ayatollah Rule Really in Danger? Protesters took to the streets of the capital, Tehran, and other cities in Iran on Monday to decry surging inflation and the collapse of the national currency, which have thrown markets into chaos and punched holes in family budgets. The currency plunged to a record low this past weekend against the U.S. dollar and the annual inflation rate rose to 42.2 percent in December. Amid the turmoil, the head of Iran’s central bank, Mohammad Reza Farzin, resigned on Monday, pending the president’s acceptance, local news media reported. A former economy minister, Abdolnaser Hemmati, was set to replace him. President Pezeshkian acknowledged the magnitude of the crisis while speaking to Parliament on Sunday about the country’s proposed 2026 budget. Iran has experienced repeated waves of protests fueled by economic woes, drought and other grievances since 2017, and it was not immediately clear whether these new demonstrations would grow and spread to additional cities. Iranian security forces have repressed previous protests with deadly force and arrests, raising the stakes for those who make their complaints public. Videos shared online on Monday showed security forces firing tear gas to disperse some of the protests in Tehran and at least two other cities. Experts attribute Iran’s deepening economic pain to a host of factors from poor management to policies that keep the country’s economy closed. The stepped-up efforts by the Trump administration to limit Iran’s oil sales to foreign countries and the war with Israel in June, during which the government tapped Iranian banks to cover its costs, have also contributed to the worsening economy. The government has few options to address the crisis swiftly, said Amir Hossein Mahdavi, a doctoral candidate in political science at the University of Connecticut who studies Iran’s economy. Omid, a 42-year-old sales manager in Tehran, said the value of his monthly income has dropped to the equivalent of $200 per month from $300 in just two months, giving him anxiety. He said he worried about being able to cover his elderly parents’ medical bills and that his car would break down and he would be unable to fix it. “These days, even hanging out with friends feels restricted, as we’re constantly calculating like human calculators whether we can squeeze in the cost of a simple coffee,” he said. Mariam, a 41-year old bank employee in Tehran, said other Iranians see her as upper middle class even though her salary now only covers two-thirds of her monthly expenses. The proposed 2026 budget showed the government’s dilemma, reflecting a substantial decrease in oil revenue and an increased reliance on tax revenue. #iran#deepening#economic#pain#protests 📱American Оbserver - Stay up to date on all important events 🇺🇸