Iran's Economic Meltdown

They're crumbling from within. But will they jettison the Khomeinists or continue down the path to economic ruin?

They may not have any say in the matter.

As tension builds up between Iran and the international community, a potentially more significant conflict is taking shape within the ruling establishment in Tehran.

The conflict is centered on what looks like a looming economic crisis. Inflation has risen to 17 percent, its highest rate since the 1970s. A cascade of business closures has pushed unemployment, already high even by Third World standards, to its highest level in three decades.

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