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Iranwire – Long lines of cars have formed at gas stations across Tehran and various other Iranian cities amid concerns over a possible gasoline price hike.
Images shared on social media depicted lengthy queues extending for several blocks in the capital.
Media reports attributed the long queues to “rumors of petrol price hike.”
These rumors began to spread on August 12, when Ali Akbar Nejad Ali, the CEO of Iran’s National Oil Products Distribution Company, announced the implementation of a “quota plan” at petrol stations.
Nejad Ali said in a TV interview that the plan aimed to “avert the closure of petrol stations.”
There have been recent reports about the closure of a considerable number of petrol stations in cities including Tehran and Karaj in recent days, sparking concerns about shortages.
However, the CEO of Iran’s National Oil Products Distribution Company has insisted that “there is no scarcity of gasoline…and the supply at fuel stations remains adequate.”
And according to Oil Minister Javad Oji, the government has no intention of increasing gasoline prices.
In November 2019, thousands of Iranians took to the streets of more than 100 cities and towns to protest a government’s decision to raise gas prices. The protests quickly turned political, with many demonstrators chanting against the Islamic Republic and its leaders.
The authorities responded to the protests with brutal force, killing at least 300 people and detaining up to 7,000, according to rights groups.
