Tehran, Iran – After about a decade, Iran is once more subject to United Nations sanctions as the West piles pressure on Tehran, despite opposition from Russia and China.
The sanctions were automatically reinstated at midnight GMT on Sunday after the European signatories of Iran’s 2015 nuclear deal invoked the “snapback” mechanism of the landmark accord to reactivate them.
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They include an arms embargo, asset freezes and travel bans, and nuclear, missile and banking sanctions that are expected to impact all sectors of the beleaguered Iranian economy, as most of over 90 million people pay the price over the coming months.
The sanctions are binding for all member states, to be enforced using nonmilitary measures.
Iran’s turbulent regional situation has some fearing more military strikes by Israel and the United States, who perpetrated 12 days of attacks on the country in June that killed more than 1,000 people and caused billions of dollars in damage.
Some Iranians are concerned that Israel would use the sanctions an excuse to attack again, as it used the resolution issued by the global nuclear watchdog in June as a pretext for a war that was cheered by Israeli officials and the public alike.
Nervous markets, worried people
On Sunday, market reactions showed economic anxiety over Iran’s increasing isolation due to the sanctions.
The Iranian rial traded at nearly 1.13 million per US dollar in Tehran’s open currency market on the second day of the working week, but activity was very limited amid fluctuations.
This marked an all-time low for the rial, which has dropped from 1.06 million per dollar when European powers triggered the snapback process a month ago.
“Things are not looking stable at all,” said Rouzbeh, a 35-year-old who works at the Grand Bazaar of Tehran, selling electric motors imported from China and other countries.
“Just like with the past few years, when the dollar has been going up, imported goods will get more expensive and scarce,” he told Al Jazeera.
“Some people here close off all sales for a few days until there’s some price stability. Others take advantage of the situation and hike prices. When prices go up, sales go down because people’s purchasing power is not going up.”
Hardliners in Tehran seemed happy with the renewed UN sanctions, likely because it means the demise of a nuclear accord that they vehemently opposed for a decade as allegedly amounting to “pure loss”.
Saeed Jalili, ultraconservative member of Iran’s Supreme National Security Council and longtime failed presidential candidate, posted online a video of a speech made last week to condemn the nuclear deal and engagement with the West.
“Today we must neutralise the enemy’s excessive demands and prevent his further threats,” he said, without elaborating how.
The Iranian judiciary said in a statement released on Saturday that it is monitoring online activity around news of snapback and warned media outlets it will take action against them if they commit any violations. It said a number of unnamed websites and Telegram channels have had cases opened against them after they “disturbed the psychological security of the society” by publishing “provocative content about price increases”.
Iranian newspapers on Sunday reflected people’s concerns, with reformist Shargh daily mourning the “death” of the nuclear deal and Donya-e-Eqtesad, the country’s largest economic daily, pointing out that inflation is at its highest point in 28 months at more than 40 percent.
Kayhan, whose editor-in-chief is appointed by Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, tried to downplay the situation, claiming that “economic growth was positive without negotiations, negative with negotiations”.
Khamenei last week ruled out any talks with the US.