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Iran’s Khuzestan: Thirst and Turmoil
Episodes of unrest in Iran often unfold similarly: the government nods to public concerns, but then resorts to repression, setting the stage for another confrontation between state and society.
The pattern is clearest in peripheral provinces like Khuzestan, where a pressing grievance is water scarcity.
- ICG
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Khuzestan, one of Iran’s most resource-rich provinces and the fifth most populous, is a microcosm of the country’s most serious problems.
It suffers from severe environmental degradation, economic deprivation and socio-political discontent.
The water scarcity that sparked protests in mid-2021 will almost certainly recur and…