Protests have repeatedly broken out over economic woes in Iran Every day, farmers hold a small protest outside Varzaneh, gathered around their tractors, long idle VARZANEH, Iran: Farmers in central Iran are increasingly turning to protests, pleading to authorities for a solution as years of drought and government mismanagement of water destroy their livelihoods. Protests have repeatedly broken out over economic woes in Iran, which has been enduring its worth drought in decades. Experts say the drought’s impact has been worsened as newly built factories soak up what little water there is. Every day, farmers hold a small protest outside Varzaneh, gathered around their tractors, long idle, parked at the town entrance next to a canal that once irrigated their fields but has been dry for years. The rallies have gotten larger, with bursts of violence, at a time when economic woes in the country from inflation to unemployment have fueled unrest repeatedly over the last year.