The  world was shocked and appalled, as mainstream media covered this unknown part of life in Iran, and further news continues to trouble readers. “It is quite terrible for people to be homeless and even sleep in graves, and for 7,500 ‘grave sleepers’ to be rounded up in a single day,” said Iranian deputy health minister Mohammad Hadi Ayazi.  This senior Iranian official is not only confirming the vast scope of this horrifying phenomenon, but also how Iranian authorities have resorted to such drastic “roundup” measures.

“… 1.35 million drug addicts across the country and one in every four marriages ending in divorce,” he added.  These social crises provide a view into the lives of the people of Iran.  

Kia writes, “This country is ruled by a regime desperately managing an economic crisis while systematic corruption and grant practices run rampant.  Senior Iranian officials are known to plunder people’s wealth, parallel to wasting billions from oil and gas revenues to fuel wars in Syria in supporting the Bashar Assad regime, and financially supporting Shiite proxies in Iraq, the Houthis in Yemen, and the Lebanese Hezb’allah.  More billions are poured into the regime’s nuclear ambitions and the program to master and obtain ballistic missiles.”

Iranian rights advocate Amir Basiri wrote in American Thinker,  “Reports from inside Iran indicate a mounting economic crisis, despite a windfall of billions pouring into Iran following the nuclear deal sealed with the P5+1 following negotiations in which the international community bent over backward in the mullahs’ favor.” 

Additionally, Vice President Es’haq Jahangir indicated, “systematic corruption had infiltrated all layers of the economy.” The majority of Iranians are living under the poverty line.

“Tehran’s prosecutor also revealed financial corruption of the regime officials plundering 80 trillion rials ($24.8 billion dollars) of the Teachers and Educators Reserve Fund,” as reported by the Iranian opposition National Council of Resistance of Iran, an umbrella group of numerous organization, including the People’s Mojahedin Organization of Iran (PMOI/MEK).

Tehran has also used their much needed budget in wars across the Middle East, most specifically Syria., while further plunging the population into poverty and social dilemmas.  “Iran is shoring up the Syrian regime from a secret HQ in Damascus nicknamed ‘the Glasshouse’ – and commanding a huge covert army in support of Assad,” the Algemeiner wrote, adding that Iranian “Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei has spent billions in hardware for its ally Bashar al-Assad in the last five years[.]”

In defiance of various agreements sealed with the international community,

Iran has continued nuclear and ballistic missile developments, showing where

the country’s money is actually spent. “The budget allocation for the Revolutionary Guard was $3.3 billion in 2013, increased to $6 billion in 2015, declined to $4.5 billion in 2016 but increased by 53 percent to $6.9 billion for 2017,” wnd.com reported.

“The above mentioned figures prove the fact that the money released by sanctions relief and heading to Iran is spent on anything but the Iranian people’s interests.  Secondly, as the “grave sleepers” phenomenon signals escalating poverty, the Iranian people have never benefited from the boasted nuclear deal, acting as the main platform to release Iran’s frozen assets.  Finally, the regime in Tehran is completely unstable, and any entity evaluating the possibility of investing in Iran is highly advised to take a step back and think twice,” concludes Kia.