Iran's parliament impeached Economy Minister Masoud Karbasian on Sunday in the latest blow to embattled President Hassan Rouhani as he struggles to face down a mounting economic crisis.

Karbasian is the second cabinet minister to be sacked this month, following the impeachment of Labour Minister Ali Rabiei on August 8.

He lost a vote of confidence, which was carried live on state radio, by 137 votes to 121, with two abstentions.

The outcome sees him stripped of his post with immediate effect, leaving Rouhani to pick a replacement.

Critics say the government squandered the opportunities presented by the 2015 nuclear deal and have failed to tackle high rates of inflation and joblessness. </s> Tehran, Aug 27 (IANS) Iran’s parliament on Sunday voted to impeach the Minister of Economy and Finance for failing to manage the country’s ongoing economic crisis.

Masoud Karbasian’s firing comes in the wake of the latest round of US sanctions against Tehran imposed earlier this month following Washington’s withdrawal from the 2015 nuclear agreement, which has put pressure on the moderate government of President Hassan Rouhani.

Iranian lawmakers were seen forcefully arguing during the impeachment session, with one MP approaching the central podium only to have his mouth physically covered by another MP, Efe reported.

The motion to censure Karbasian passed with 137 votes in favor, 121 against and two abstentions, out of a total of 260 legislators who participated.

Rohani is to address lawmakers on Monday and has up to three months to propose a replacement.

On August 8, Iranian lawmakers also voted to sack the Minister of Labor, Ali Rabiei. </s> Iran’s parliament impeached Economy Minister Masoud Karbasian today in the latest blow to the embattled government as it struggles to face down a mounting economic crisis. Karbasian lost the vote of confidence, which was carried live on state radio, by 137 votes to 121, with two abstentions. He is the second minister in President Hassan Rouhani’s cabinet to be impeached this month, following the removal of Labour Minister Ali Rabiei on August 8.

Iran has struggled with high rates of inflation and joblessness for years, despite a slight improvement following the 2015 nuclear deal with world powers, which lifted international sanctions and saw a flood of foreign investors. Critics of Rouhani’s government say it squandered the opportunities presented by the nuclear deal, which now looks increasingly moribund after the US pulled out of the agreement in May and began reintroducing sanctions.

“Inefficiency and lack of planning have nothing to do with sanctions,” said one conservative MP, Abbas Payizadeh, in a speech ahead of the vote. “Wrong decisions have harmed the people and led to individuals looting public assets,” he added. </s> Iran's finance minister has been impeached by the country's parliament in the latest blow to the embattled government as it struggles against a fall in the currency value and a mounting economic crisis.

Masoud Karbasian lost the vote of confidence on Sunday by 137 votes to 121, with two abstentions.

He is the second minister in President Hassan Rouhani's cabinet to be impeached this month following the removal of Labour Minister Ali Rabiei.

Critics of Rouhani's government say it squandered the opportunities presented by the nuclear deal, which now looks increasingly moribund after the US pulled out in May and began reintroducing sanctions.

"Inefficiency and lack of planning have nothing to do with sanctions," said one conservative MP, Abbas Payizadeh, in a speech ahead of the vote.

"Wrong decisions have harmed the people and led to individuals looting public assets."

In late July, President Rouhani's cabinet appointed a new governor for the central bank, a move seen as a concession to hardline critics who blame the government for economic problems.

Protests linked to the tough economic situation in the country began last December, spreading to more than 80 cities and towns and resulting in 25 deaths.

Sporadic protests, led by truck drivers, farmers and merchants in Tehran's bazaar, have continued regularly since then and have occasionally resulted in violent confrontations with security forces.

Iran has struggled with high rates of inflation and joblessness for years, despite a slight improvement following the 2015 nuclear deal with world powers, which lifted international sanctions and saw a flood of foreign investors. </s> Iran’s parliament impeached Economy Minister Masoud Karbasian on Sunday in the latest blow to embattled President Hassan Rowhani as he struggles to face down a mounting economic crisis.

Karbasian is the second cabinet minister to be sacked this month, following the impeachment of Labour Minister Ali Rabiei on August 8.

Critics say the government squandered the opportunities presented by the 2015 nuclear deal and have failed to tackle high rates of inflation and joblessness.

With the United States abandoning the nuclear deal in May and reimposing sanctions, Rowhani’s hopes of attracting vast sums of foreign investment appear dead in the water.

Major European firms, including France’s Total, Peugeot and Renault, and Germany’s Siemens and Daimler, have all announced their departure since the US announcement.

French energy giant Total quits Iran gas project with China’s CNPC as US reimposes sanctions

Rowhani’s conservative opponents – who long-opposed his outreach to the West and efforts to improve civil liberties – say the primary blame lies with government corruption and mismanagement.

“Inefficiency and lack of planning have nothing to do with sanctions,” said one lawmaker, Abbas Payizadeh, in a speech ahead of the vote.

“Wrong decisions have harmed the people and led to individuals looting public assets,” he added.

Rowhani, a political moderate, can still count on the support of a sizeable reformist bloc in parliament, but even some of its key figures have grown disillusioned.

“What have we done with this nation? We made them miserable and wretched,” said Elias Hazrati, of the reformist Hope faction in parliament.

“The middle class are moving towards poverty,” added Hazrati, who broke ranks to vote in favour of the impeachment.

Karbasian lost the vote of confidence, which was carried live on state radio, by 137 votes to 121, with two abstentions.

The outcome sees him stripped of his post with immediate effect, leaving Rowhani to pick a replacement.

Hazrati said the government had failed to plan for the real pain of sanctions, which will hit when a second phase of US measures is reintroduced in November targeting Iran’s crucial oil sector.

“We haven’t been prepared and we are not prepared now,” said Hazrati.

“The only person we could get our hands on was the economy minister. Otherwise, the president should have been impeached,” he added.

For now, Rowhani remains protected by supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who said this month that removing the president would “play into the hands of the enemy”.

But parliament has summoned the president for the first time to answer questions on the crisis, and he is expected to appear on Tuesday.

Washington criticises European aid package for Iran, warning of ‘more money to conduct assassinations’

One of the key markers of Iran’s economic crisis has been the collapse in the currency, which has lost around half its value since April.

That was partly owing to US hostility, but also due to a disastrous decision to fix the value of the rial and shut down currency traders. The move triggered a boom in the black market and widespread corruption, before the decision was finally reversed this month.

Businesspeople in Iran point to other deep-rooted problems, from the debt-ridden banking sector to the outsized and opaque role of military-linked organisations in the economy.

Rowhani has taken small steps to resolve these issues, but most Iranians are dissatisfied with his progress.

There have been persistent, low-level strikes and demonstrations across the country for months over high prices and unpaid wages that have occasionally turned into violent protests against the system as a whole.

Figures released by the central bank on Saturday showed huge jumps in the cost of essential goods compared with a year ago.

Dairy products are up by a third, chicken by more than 20 per cent and fresh fruit by 71 per cent. </s> Iran's parliament has voted to sack the finance minister, dealing another blow to President Hassan Rouhani as he faces mounting discontent over the economy.

Critics of the ousted finance minister, Masoud Karbasian, said the government had failed to do enough to shore up the economy as President Donald Trump began restoring sanctions after withdrawing the United States from Tehran's 2015 nuclear deal with world powers.

Parliament Speaker Ali Larijani says 137 out of 260 lawmakers present voted against Karbasian on Sunday. Earlier this month, lawmakers dismissed Rouhani's labor minister, Ali Rabiei, on similar grounds.

Iran has struggled with high rates of inflation and joblessness for years, despite a slight improvement following the 2015 nuclear deal with world powers, which lifted international sanctions and saw a flood of foreign investors.

Critics of Rouhani's government say it squandered the opportunities presented by the nuclear deal, which now looks increasingly moribund after the US pulled out of the agreement in May and began reintroducing sanctions.

"Inefficiency and lack of planning have nothing to do with sanctions," said one conservative MP, Abbas Payizadeh, in a speech ahead of the vote.

"Wrong decisions have harmed the people and led to individuals looting public assets," he added. </s> On Monday afternoon, Iranian president Hassan Rouhani appointed Seyyed Rahmatollah Akrami as Acting Minister of Economic Affairs and Finance, according to the official website of Iran's presidency 'preisdent.ir'.

Akrami's appointment comes a day after the Iranian parliament sacked Iranian Minister of Economic Affairs and Finance (MEAF) Masoud Karbasian, which in turn came more than two weaks after the impeachment of labor minister Ali Rabiei.

In the Name of Allah, the Most Beneficent, the Most Merciful

According to Article 135 of the Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Iran and with regard to your commitment and executive and management experiences, you are being appointed as “Acting Minister of Economic Affairs and Finance”.

I wish you success in carrying out your responsibilities in serving the noble people of Iran and the Islamic Republic through cooperation of all employees of the ministry, upholding the principles of the rule of law, moderation and "Code of Ethics of the Government of Prudence and Hope".

President of the Islamic Republic of Iran </s> Iranian President Hassan Rouhani has appeared before the Parliament to answer a series of questions raised by lawmakers on his administration’s economic performance.

During Tuesday’s parliamentary session, lawmakers posed questions on the Rouhani administration’s handling of the country’s economic issues, including a high unemployment rate, slow economic growth and a devaluation of Iran’s rial currency as well as goods and currency smuggling.

The lawmakers are also critical of the continuation of banking sanctions against Tehran despite the 2015 nuclear deal -- under which those restrictions should no longer exist.

Responding to the lawmakers' questions, Rouhani defended his administration’s performance in two rounds. Based on the results of a vote conducted at the end of the session, the parliamentarians were not convinced with the president's answers on four out of the five questions raised. They only found the president's response to the issue of banking sanctions satisfying.

First assuming power in 2013, President Rouhani's “Prudence and Hope” government has been credited with clinching a historical nuclear accord with world states only two years later.

The agreement, officially known as the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), relieved the country of nuclear-related sanctions – including those imposed by the US -- and was subsequently endorsed in the form of a UN Security Council resolution.

In May, however, the US left the deal in clear breach of its international obligations, and reinstated sanctions against Iran as part of its fresh campaign of economic pressure.

A first round of the bans came into force earlier this month, while the second batch is due to take effect in early November.

The government has vowed to try to make good on its pledges of commitment to national prosperity and counter the Washington-led campaign of economic pressure.

Iran's parliament, the Majlis, has on several occasions called Rouhani’s ministers to account.

Already this month, it has removed Labor Minister Ali Rabi’ei, and Minister of Economic Affairs and Finance Masoud Karbasian in back-to-back impeachments.

During his comments to lawmakers, Rouhani touched on Washington’s attempts to pile up economic pressure, assuring the nation that the US will face defeat in its anti-Iran plots.

“We need to tell the Iranian nation that we will not allow the United States' plots to succeed. The nation should be sure that we will not allow a bunch of anti-Iranians, who have gathered at the White House today, to plot against us,” Rouhani said.

Elsewhere, the president defended the nuclear agreement his administration had reached with world states, saying that Tehran had entered the deal to prove the peaceful nature of its nuclear program to the international community.

“In the JCPOA, we made achievements that will never die,” said the president.

Rouhani added that the nuclear deal helped resolve “a great part” of the country’s economic issues by lifting the sanctions.

The deal also closed the case of the so-called possible military dimensions (PMD) of Iran’s nuclear program, paving the way for the removal of military bans on the country, he added. </s> Iran arrests ex-minister of welfare over financial fraud

TEHRAN, Iran (AP) — Iran's official IRNA news agency says authorities have arrested the former minister of welfare and social security for financial fraud.

The Sunday report says Parviz Kazemi was taken to Tehran's Evin prison two days ago.

Kazemi resigned from his post in 2006 after nearly a year under former hard-line President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad over political differences. He later worked in the banking sector.

In recent years, Kazemi turned into a critic of Ahmadinejad.

Several of Ahmadinejad's allies are in jail over charges relating to security and financial fraud.

In September, a court sentenced Esfandiar Rahim Mashaei, a close ally of Ahmadinejad to six-and-a-half years in prison for plotting to commit crimes against national security, propaganda against the Islamic Republic and insulting officials.
Iran's finance minister Masoud Karbasian is sacked after an impeachment attempt by parliament. This is the second impeachment this month, after Ali Rabiei's on 8 August.