Iran's interim president gives 1st public address since Raisi's death
Iran's acting President Mohammad Mokhber has addressed parliament in Tehran in his first public speech since a helicopter crash killed his predecessor and seven others.
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Mundo Mohammad Mokhber
The parliamentary speech comes as Iran prepares for a presidential election to choose a successor to Ebrahim Raisi, who died in a helicopter crash last week.
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In his address to parliament, Mokhber praised Raisi's tenure, saying that oil production — one of Iran's main sources of foreign currency — had reached 3.6 million barrels per day.
Oil Minister Javad Owji said on Sunday that Iran currently exports about two million barrels per day, despite sanctions imposed on the Islamic Republic.
Mokhber also said the country's economy had remained stable "under the command of Raisi," even as Iran has carried out military actions in Iraq, Israel and Pakistan.
"Three countries were targeted. We targeted Israel... People find that when they wake up in the morning, the figures and indices are the same, the price of hard currency is the same, inflation is the same, liquidity is the same," Mokhber said, referring to the economy.
"This strength and power is not a normal thing, it is due to the guidance of the Supreme Leader and the sincere efforts of Ayatollah Raisi," he added.
Iran's currency, the rial, is currently trading at 580,000 to the US dollar, a devaluation exacerbated by the US's unilateral withdrawal from the 2018 nuclear deal and a series of attacks on shipping in the Middle East that were initially blamed on Iran and have involved Yemen's Houthi rebels.
The attacks began after Israel's war in the Gaza Strip against Hamas seven months ago.
On 20 May, rescue teams recovered the bodies of Raisi, Foreign Minister Hossein Amirabdollahian and five other people from the wreckage of the helicopter in a mountainous area of northwestern Iran.
The presidential election is due to be held on 28 June, and Mokhber is among those who could run to become Iran's next president.
The five-day registration period for candidates in the election begins on Thursday.
Iran's 290 lawmakers are due to elect a new speaker of parliament on Tuesday.
The new Iranian parliament, which convened for the first time on Wednesday, was elected in March in a vote that saw the lowest turnout since the 1979 Islamic Revolution.
Iran's parliament has a secondary role in the running of the country, although it can exert pressure on the presidency by approving the annual budget and other legislation.
The supreme leader, 85-year-old Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, has the final say on all matters of state.
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