WELCOME TO KTNBIO

Iran’s parliament on Sunday voted to remove the country’s Economy Minister, Abdolnaser Hemmati, from office over mismanagement of the economy and a plunging national currency.

According to state media, the parliament dismissed Hemmati in a no-confidence vote nearly eight months after President Masoud Pezeshkian appointed his cabinet.

During this period, Iran’s currency has reportedly lost close to half of its value against the US dollar.

The Iranian rial now trades at 927,000 to the US dollar, compared to 595,500 in August last year.

State media reported that parliamentarians opposing Hemmati argued that he had failed to prevent price increases in essential goods such as medicine, food, and housing, while also being unable to control the foreign exchange market.

Hemmati had prioritised ending US sanctions on Iran and removing the country from the Financial Action Task Force’s blacklist.

According to Hemmati’s supporters, it was not the right time to remove the economy minister, as Iran remained under US sanctions, and replacing him would cause further instability.

The economy is said to be the primary challenge for Iran’s ruling clerics, who fear a resurgence of protests by lower- and middle-income communities angered by rising poverty, which have erupted periodically since 2017.