Iran’s currency fell to a record low on Wednesday, part of a staggering drop in the rial’s value since Washington pulled out of the nuclear deal only four months ago, AP/The New York Times informed.
Signs of the currency chaos can be seen everywhere in Tehran, as worried residents lined up outside beleaguered money changers throughout the capital, travel agents offered vacation prices only in hard currency, and diapers disappeared from store shelves, AP adds.
Many exchange shops in the capital simply turned off their electronic signs showing the current rate for the American dollar, while some Iranians who wanted hard currency sought out informal money traders on street corners. Exchange shops that remained open offered 150,000 rials to the U.S. dollar.
In May, despite the United Nations repeatedly acknowledging Iran had lived up to the terms of the deal, President Donald Trump withdrew America from the agreement, saying that he wants stricter terms put on Tehran – including limiting its ballistic missile program, curtailing its regional influence and forever limiting its nuclear activities.
Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, Iran’s supreme leader, called the American moves economic “sabotage” this past weekend, and mentioned the diaper shortage, AP/USA Today noted.
“Imagine that in Tehran or other major cities, baby diapers suddenly become scarce. This is happening, this is real, this is not make-believe. Baby diapers! This makes people angry. On the other side, the enemy wants people to be angry with the government and system. This is one of their ways,” Ayatollah Khamenei said, according to a transcript on his official website.
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