THIS PAGE WILL BE UPDATED WITH THE LATEST NEWS
UPDATE: 09:10 PM CET
Southern Iran Hit by Devastating Floods, Four Deaths Reported
Following the floods in Fars and Hormozgan provinces on Sunday, Hossein Darvishi, the director of the Red Crescent Society in Fars province said: “In Lamerd and Darab, two people lost their lives due to the floods.
“Serious damages were also reported in the wake of the overflows in Khuzestan, Bushehr, and Hormozgan provinces and many people have lost their livelihoods. Areas of the city of Ahvaz, including Kemplo, Kuye Alavi, Simetri, and Zeitune Kargari were severely flooded.
Iran: Skyrocketing Prices under Raisi’s Government
On Monday, the state-run Didban website, acknowledged skyrocketing prices of consumer goods in Iran under the mullahs’ regime, thus debunking the hollow promises of Ebrahim Raisi and his government.
“Over the past year, according to the Statistics Center of Iran, we have seen a 55.3% increase in prices of rice, a 16.5% increase in lamb prices, a 34.9% increase in beef price, a 15.9% increase in poultry prices, and a 77.7% increase in fish prices. Meanwhile, the minimum monthly wage of workers is 25 million rials [$84],” read the article.
“Meanwhile, the country’s economy has faced 43.4% inflation in December, indicating a historical gap between the salaries and inflation rate,” the Didban website added.
UPDATE: 01:40 PM CET
Iran: Child Marriage Expands Due to Poverty
The state-run Arman-e Meli daily on January 2 acknowledged the “Expansion of child marriage due to poverty in society,” and authorities’ negligence in this regard.
“The situation has developed in such a way that women are becoming poorer daily,” Arman daily wrote.
“We are witnessing the rise of child marriage in society. Some officials openly encourage child marriage,” Arman-e Meli quoted Zahra Nejad Bahram a women’s rights activist.
“According to published statistics, the number of child marriages in 2020 and spring 2021 has increased sharply in different parts of the country,” Nejad Bahram said.
Iran: Workers Can’t Afford a Food Basket
The state-run Hamdeli daily reported on Jan 2 that the cost of the workers’ food basket is soaring.
“The cost of workers’ food baskets has reached 115 million rials per month. Due to their living conditions, most workers cannot afford these expenses.” “Inflation has crossed 45 percent, but wages are the same as they were earlier this year,” Hamdeli daily wrote.
Iranian workers’ minimum salary is 25 million rials equivalent to $84 per month, based on current free-market rates. Meanwhile, the regime squanders billions of dollars on its malign activities.
UPDATE: 08:30 AM CET
Iran: 60 Million Iranians Are Under Poverty Line
Morteza Afghe, one of the regime’s economists warned about the consequences of removing the official exchange rate of 42000 rials for one dollar.
“In the current situation, removing the official exchange rate of 42000 rials, or any other measure, that could end up increasing prices, is not in the interest of the country,” he said, according to the semi-official ISNA news agency on Sunday.
“According to the Ministry of Cooperatives, Labor, and Social Welfare, about 60 million people are eligible for government support, which means that 60 million people are below the poverty line,” he added.
While Iranians suffer, the regime squanders billions of dollars on its regional adventurism.
Iran: Devastating Consequences of Removing Official Exchange Rate on Medicine
The state-run Jahan-e Sanat warned on Sunday that if the regime removes the official exchange rate of 42000 rials for one dollar, which is used to import medicines, people have to pay $3.5 billion dollars.
“Therefore, the government must pay 10.5 trillion rials in addition to the current insurance budget to maintain the current situation. But the government does not have the budget to make such expenses. This is at a time when 6 million Iranians are not covered by insurance,” Jahan-e Sanat wrote.
It is worth noting that Farshad Momeni, one of the regime’s economists said, “The corruption that the removal of the official exchange rate makes, equals 7.5 times the country’s budget.”
Iran: Retirees, Workers Hold Protests Rallies in Several Cities
Iranian retirees and pensioners held protest rallies in several cities on Sunday. In Rash, Gilan province, the workers held their demonstrations in front of the local offices of the Welfare Organization, reiterating demands for the adjustment of their pensions according to the poverty line, government healthcare, and the payment of government debts to the retirement fund.
Iran: Coronavirus Death Toll Has Exceeded 494,400
The People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK) announced on Sunday, January 2, 2022, that the Coronavirus death toll in 547 cities has exceeded 494,400. In Tehran the death toll has reached 115,600, Isfahan 34,220, Khuzestan 29,870, Lorestan 16,360, Alborz 14,448, Kerman 13,327, Golestan 10,765, Kermanshah 9,244, Hormozgan 8,180, and South Khorasan 4,356.
Read more: Iran News in Brief – January 2, 2022
