Shocking Report: Al-Ahwaz Tops the List of the “Most Miserable” Despite Its Vast Wealth
Hussain Hazbavi 
Media reports, cited by the Khuzestan News website, revealed an official acknowledgment from the Iranian occupation authorities showing that (Khuzestan Province) — Al-Ahwaz — despite its enormous oil, agricultural, and mineral wealth, tops the list of the most miserable regions and peoples in the geography of (Iran). According to the source, the misery rate in Al-Ahwaz has reached approximately 50.8%.
This percentage was calculated based on the officially announced inflation rate of 38.7% and the unemployment rate of 12.1%. However, the Ahwazi Organization for Human Rights asserts that these official figures do not reflect the true economic situation in Al-Ahwaz, but rather mask a much deeper and more dangerous crisis.
Many Ahwazi citizens work in unstable jobs such as daily labor, taxi driving, and informal trades, which are not classified as fixed-income occupations. This makes the real unemployment rate significantly higher than reported, potentially reaching around 50%. Consequently, the actual misery rate is likely much higher than official figures suggest, especially amid rising inflation and the collapse of purchasing power.
Among the main causes of the widespread extreme and absolute poverty in Al-Ahwaz are:
Racism in employment and systematic marginalization of the Ahwazi people Preventing Ahwazis from engaging in agriculture, which is the main source of income for most families Cutting off drinking and irrigation water to Ahwazi villages and cities to forcibly displace residents and seize their lands Drying up rivers after diverting water from Al-Ahwaz to other regions, which has led to severe desertification and the displacement of thousands of families. For two consecutive years, Al-Ahwaz ranked first on the World Health Organization’s blacklist of the most polluted cities globally, with pollution levels exceeding 372 micrograms per cubic meter — 19 times higher than the international limit of 20 micrograms per cubic meter Widespread outbreak of serious diseases resulting from environmental destruction, with Al-Ahwaz having the highest rate of leukemia cases in the country And more…
This suffocating economic crisis is occurring in a region that contributes about 90% of Iran’s national income, thanks to its vast oil and gas fields and abundant natural resources. Nevertheless, the Iranian occupation authorities continue to implement systematic impoverishment and starvation policies aimed at weakening the Ahwazi people and forcing them into migration or detachment from their land.
The Ahwazi Organization for Human Rights warns that these conditions have dire consequences on Ahwazi society, including rising crime and theft rates, widespread begging, deteriorating education and healthcare services, and the collapse of basic living standards.
The organization affirms that what is happening is not the result of mere negligence, but a deliberate policy of discrimination, impoverishment, and forced displacement. It calls on the international community and human rights organizations to shoulder their responsibilities in monitoring these violations and pressuring the Iranian occupation authorities to guarantee the Ahwazi people’s rights to a dignified life and social justice.
