Iranian Pensioners, Workers Stage Protests Against Poverty

While civil and labor activists have warned against the deterioration of the financial situation of workers and retirees, protest rallies continue in various cities.

A group of retirees as well as workers at a local sugarcane company gathered in the city of Shush in southern Khuzestan province on Sunday to protest their poor living conditions and the small increase in wages in the new Iranian year.

Meanwhile, pensioners held a protest rally in Shushtar in the province chanting "Controlling inflation, Just An Empty Slogan," referring to Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei's motto this year as the year to control inflation.

At the same time, videos shared on social media show retirees in the cities of Ahvaz, Esfahan, and West Alborz region holding gatherings.

Union protests continue in Iran while student and popular protest rallies against mandatory hijab are also underway.

The students in the faculty of social sciences at Allameh University in Tehran held a rally on Sunday, to show anger at the mandatory hijab and poisoning of schoolgirls.

Rising prices and economic hardship have led to repeated labor strikes and nationwide protests in the past few days.

The national currency has halved in value since September pushing prices for food and other necessities higher on top of 40-50-percent inflation in the past three years.