With Iranians cut off from their bank accounts for over 48 hours, some are asking the very simple question: Where is the money?
Tens of thousands of residents from this Middle Eastern country are reporting of an inability access their own funds, in any currency. What began as a limit to how much a person could actually withdraw in the first few days of the war with Israel has led to a complete cut off from their accounts.
Teherani resident Amir Hossein told UI that he had visited no less than 10 cashpoints throughout several suburbs in the hope of hitting one that could provide him with just enough to buy groceries for next week, just in case the shops ran out of basic goods.
Similar accounts can be heard across social media and the buck doesn’t stop there – no pun intended. For several days now Iranians across the country have complained that their banks have shut down, leaving them with no explanation, no alternative, and no indication when fiscal activity would return.
“So where is my money,?” Amir asked. “How do you explain that overnight, I cannot access my own account or withdraw cash, less than a week after the war began. Maybe our money is being used to fund this war. What else are they doing with it?” he continues.
The Islamic Republic has been long accused of corruption, so while Amir’s theory may sound extreme, Iranians are asking themselves how the government is able to fund tens of thousands of ballistic missiles and its nuclear program, facilitate the costs of its ministries – often criticized as lavish – while maintaining the state economy, during what is undoubtedly an expensive war.
