Iran is again convulsed by protests. The lifting of fuel subsidies and the cutting of rations have sparked demonstrations across the country, resulting, says the human rights group Amnesty International, in the deaths of more 100 people. Accurate information is difficult to come by since the Tehran government has shut down the internet within the country. The unrest will likely intensify the standoff between Iran and Western critics, especially the United States.
Earlier this month, Tehran announced that it would cut subsidies for fuel, a move that would effectively raise the price of gasoline by 50 percent. The decree also substantially lowered — from 250 liters to 60 liters — the amount of gas that could be bought at the subsidized price; after that amount is purchased, the charge per liter doubles. For those purchases, the price of gas has effectively tripled.
Iran, possessor of the world's fourth-largest oil reserves, has kept the price of fuel artificially low, but that policy makes little economic sense. It is far more useful for the government to provide cash directly to the country's neediest citizens so they can use the money as they see fit. And that is what the government intends to do. President Hassan Rouhani said the government will pass the new revenue on to 60 million needy Iranians in the form of cash subsidies. "The government's goal ... is to help the middle class and lower-income households," he said.