Rouhani: conditions “better than ever” for the removal of US sanctions New nationwide protests over economic hardship JEDDAH: Hard-liners in Iran were accused on Wednesday of sabotaging the country’s future as regime leaders turned on each other ahead of a crunch presidential election in June. Ordinary Iranians have also staged a series of protests across the country against economic hardship and the collapse in value of the Iranian rial. President Hassan Rouhani, who is ineligible for reelection after serving two terms, said on Wednesday that conditions were “better than ever” for the removal of US sanctions that have crippled Iran’s economy. Donald Trump reimposed the sanctions in 2018 when he pulled the US out of the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), the 2015 agreement to curb Iran’s nuclear program, but US President Joe Biden has said he would like to revive the deal. However, Rouhani accused his hard-line opponents of blocking talks on the issue. “It is a great betrayal of the Iranian nation if any faction or person delays the end of the sanctions even for one hour,” Rouhani said. “The small minority that is obstructing this path needs to stop its destructive acts.” Rouhani’s ally Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said that unless progress was made soon on restoring the nuclear deal, diplomacy would be halted for months by the presidential election on June 18. On Tuesday, French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian blamed Iranian pre-election politics for hindering the nuclear deal’s revival. Meanwhile, protests are mounting across Iran against the country’s economic collapse. In the past two days, there have been demonstrations in Tehran, Karaj, Isfahan, Tabriz, Ahvaz, Rasht, Khorramabad, Arak, and Kermanshah. Inflation is surging as the regime prints banknotes to address its budget deficit. Iran’s national currency, the rial, has lost more than 80 percent of its value, and many Iranians, particularly retired people on pensions, are living below the poverty line. Protesters have been chanting slogans such as “High prices and inflation are killing people,” and “Our country sits on treasures, retirees live in hardship.” The retirees were joined in the protests by municipality staff in Behbahan in southwest Iran, workers at the Pars Metal Company, dairy farmers, and employees at the electricity distribution company in Tehran, who staged a demonstration in front of parliament. Even state-controlled media has warned the regime that discontent is rife, and is likely to erupt when coronavirus restrictions are lifted. The Jahan-e Sanat daily said: “When society is freed from the clutches of this disease, political, social, and economic faults will begin to move with greater destructive power.”