Ayatollahs moving millions out of Iran as they 'abandon ship,' US Treasury chief says - Sam Halpern

 

by Sam Halpern

We are now seeing the rats fleeing the ship, because we can see millions, tens of millions of dollars being wired out of the country," US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told Newsmax.

 

A currency dealer poses for a photo with a U.S one dollar bill and the amount being given when converting it into Iranian rials in an exchange shop in Tehran, Iran December 25, 2022

(photo credit: MAJID ASGARIPOUR/WANA (WEST ASIA NEWS AGENCY) VIA REUTERS)

Iranian leaders are moving tens of millions of dollars out of the country as they begin “abandoning ship” amid the deadly protests in Iran, US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent told Newsmax on Wednesday.

“We are now seeing the rats fleeing the ship, because we can see millions, tens of millions of dollars being wired out of the country, snuck out of the country by the Iranian leadership,” Bessent said. “So they are abandoning ship, and we are seeing it come into banks and financial institutions all over the world.

The ongoing protests in Iran began in response to the country’s plummeting economy, as the rial’s value fell to record lows. In the interview, Bessent attributed the downward spiral of the Iranian economy to the economic measures US President Donald Trump began implementing after being elected.

Bessent: We are approaching Trump's endgame with Iran

“We're quickly approaching the endgame of President Trump's plan that he put into effect almost immediately when he came into office. We've been applying a maximum pressure campaign on Iran's oil exports to cut off the sources of the regime's funding. And what we have seen in the past month is a total financial collapse of the regime.”

After protests began, demonstrations broke out all over the country. The regime responded with deadly crackdowns. Iranian opposition outlet Iran International estimated that over 12,000 people were killed over the course of two days last week, however the true figure is unknown. 

US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent (C) speaks as U.S. President Donald Trump announces plans to host the 2026 G20 summit in Miami, Florida during a press availability in the Oval Office of the White House on September 05, 2025 in Washington, DC. (credit: KEVIN DIETSCH/GETTY IMAGES)

US-based Iranian rights group HRANA has thus far confirmed 2,615 deaths, a number that grows every day.

According to the group, 153 of those were either members of the regime’s security forces or government supporters.

Additionally, Israeli Energy and Infrastructure Minister Eli Cohen told public broadcaster KAN News on Thursday morning that Israel had information that protesters had killed hundreds of Iran’s security personnel.

Further, while Trump has said the killings in Iran were "stopping," he has threatened military action against the country if they did not.

European officials on Wednesday evening told Reuters that US military intervention in Iran could come in the next 24 hours.

Sam Halpern

Source: https://www.jpost.com/international/article-883473

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