Ordinary people and patients with severe illness in Iran are the main target of the sanctions against the country

Six world powers and Iran have agreed to extend the deadline for a nuclear deal for seven months.The US and Iran claimed that serious progress has been made and they are confident about reaching a deal in June, which means the removal of sanctions has been postponed for seven more months.

The nuclear crisis has become part of Iranians’ life. Iranian civilians are familiar with the impact of the Western and UN sanctions, more so than any other international expert.

Hundreds of thousands of Iranians with serious illnesses bear the brunt of the sanctions in terms of a dire shortage of life-saving medical supplies and drugs, such as chemotherapy drugs for cancer and blood clotting agents for haemophiliacs, where Iran has the highest incidence of cancer patients in the Middle East.

According to Iran’s media, “41,000 people die of cancer each year and around 70,000 people are diagnosed with cancer in Iran every year”.

Moreover, the lives of thousands of Iranian children who are suffering from haemophilia have been put at imminent risk due to a shortage of proper medicine.

Although the obstacles are not on trade in humanitarian supplies such as food and medicine, Iranian pharmaceutical companies are unable to transfer money abroad directly, causing payment delays. Therefore, many international companies are not willing to do business with Iran.

Western powers have frozen various assets of Iranian banks and businesses, which has led the country into a severe economic crisis and affects the lives of the entire population. The Iranian currency, the rial, has fallen 80 per cent against the dollar in the black market in the past three years, as reported in the Iranian news outlet Fararu. As a result, the price of essentials such as food and fruit has increased dramatically. Iran has experienced very high inflation during recent years.

In addition, Iran is unable to sell its oil due to the sanctions, so the income of the country has decreased and the government has little spending power. Therefore, many state companies have fired their employees and unemployment is increasing. The situation spreads anger and disappointment amongst Iranians.

Overall, the lives of ordinary people in Iran have been affected by a shocking economic crisis. A report from Bloomberg shows that “Iran’s economy is 25 per cent smaller today than it would have been without sanctions”.

Iranians hear the same news again and again about the nuclear talks: but they are struggling for their lives under the pressure of the imposed sanctions.

This article has been published on The News Hub