Iran's parliament has voted to sack the finance minister, dealing another blow to President Hassan Rouhani as he faces mounting discontent over the economy.
Critics of the ousted finance minister, Masoud Karbasian, said the government had failed to do enough to shore up the economy as President Donald Trump began restoring sanctions after withdrawing the United States from Tehran's 2015 nuclear deal with world powers.
Parliament Speaker Ali Larijani says 137 out of 260 lawmakers present voted against Karbasian on Sunday. Earlier this month, lawmakers dismissed Rouhani's labor minister, Ali Rabiei, on similar grounds.
Iran has struggled with high rates of inflation and joblessness for years, despite a slight improvement following the 2015 nuclear deal with world powers, which lifted international sanctions and saw a flood of foreign investors.
Critics of Rouhani's government say it squandered the opportunities presented by the nuclear deal, which now looks increasingly moribund after the US pulled out of the agreement in May and began reintroducing sanctions.
"Inefficiency and lack of planning have nothing to do with sanctions," said one conservative MP, Abbas Payizadeh, in a speech ahead of the vote.
"Wrong decisions have harmed the people and led to individuals looting public assets," he added.
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