Explained: How US Sanctions Devastated Iranians Trump Claims He Wants To ‘Help’ | World News

New Delhi: As protests continued to spread to Iranian cities, US President Donald Trump intervened with warnings of possible military action. He insists his goal is to help people on the street. The demonstrations, which began late last month, brought together thousands of Iranians protesting economic hardship, rising prices and the depreciation of their currency.

Posting on Truth Social on Saturday, the US president wrote: “Iran is looking at FREEDOM perhaps like never before. USA is ready to help!!!”

He reiterated the same in subsequent public statements, claiming that he supported protesters speaking out against Iran’s leadership.

What these statements overlook is the impact of US-led sanctions on Iran for decades, many of which were expanded under the Trump administration. Over time, these sanctions weakened the economy and helped create the conditions that led to ongoing unrest.

How Did the Protests Start?

The protests broke out on December 28, 2025, starting from Tehran’s Grand Bazaar, after the Iranian currency fell to a historical low against the US dollar. Shopkeepers closed their shops and gathered to protest rising prices that made daily survival increasingly difficult.

From Tehran, the movement quickly spread to other provinces and evolved into a broader challenge to Iran’s leadership.

On Monday, the Iranian rial was trading above 1.4 million against the dollar. This marked a dramatic decline from nearly 700,000 in January 2025 and nearly 900,000 in the middle of last year.

The collapse of the currency increased inflation. Food prices across the country are now an average of 72 percent higher than a year ago, putting huge pressure on households.

Long History of Sanctions

Iran is among the countries subject to the heaviest sanctions in the world. The roots of these measures date back to 1979, when Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini returned from exile and Iran was declared an Islamic republic after a referendum.

That same year, the United States imposed its first sanctions after Iranian students stormed the U.S. embassy in Tehran and took American diplomats hostage.

The Islamic revolution had overthrown Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, whose rule was allegedly based on oppression and torture without democratic legitimacy. The United States had supported the Shah and had previously helped oust Iran’s democratically elected Prime Minister, Mohammed Mossadegh, in a coup in 1953; This was supported by American and British intelligence.

In 1979, Washington halted oil imports from Iran, froze $12 billion in Iranian assets, and banned most Iranian goods from entering the United States. Only limited exceptions such as food, informational material, and certain rugs were allowed into the United States.

In 1995, President Bill Clinton issued executive orders banning U.S. companies from investing in Iran’s oil and gas sector and doing business with the country. A year later, Congress demanded sanctions on foreign companies investing more than $20 million annually in Iran’s energy industry.

In December 2006, the United Nations Security Council imposed sanctions on Iran’s nuclear-related trade and froze the assets of individuals and firms linked to the program. These measures were aimed at restricting Iran’s nuclear capabilities, although uranium enrichment resumed in late 2005 after a previous halt.

Sanctions were expanded in subsequent years, with the European Union following suit.

In 2015, Iran reached the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action with the United States, European Union (EU), China, France, Germany, Russia and the United Kingdom. The agreement restricted uranium enrichment, halted operations at the Fordow nuclear facility, and allowed only peaceful nuclear development in exchange for the lifting of sanctions.

Tehran agreed to halt enrichment at Fordow for 15 years and turn the site into a nuclear, physics and technology center.

In 2018, in his first term, Trump withdrew the United States from the nuclear agreement and reinstated all sanctions lifted under the agreement.

A year later, his administration designated the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) as a Foreign Terrorist Organization and, along with senior Iranian officials, imposed further sanctions on petrochemicals and metals such as steel, aluminum and copper. These steps formed part of Trump’s “maximum pressure” campaign.

On January 3, 2020, the United States killed Qassem Soleimani, commander of the IRGC’s Quds Force, in a drone strike in Baghdad, Iraq. Additional sanctions followed.

Between 2021 and 2025, the then-Biden administration kept most US sanctions in place.

In September 2025, UN sanctions were reimposed after the Security Council voted against permanently lifting economic restrictions tied to Iran’s nuclear program.

Economic Damage Over Time

Sanctions left deep scars on the Iranian economy. World Bank data shows that the country’s per capita GDP fell from over $8,000 in 2012 to around $6,000 in 2017, falling to just over $5,000 in 2024.

The steepest declines came after the reimposition of US sanctions from 2018 that reduced oil exports and blocked access to global financial systems.

After sanctions were restored, oil shipments fell by 60 to 80 percent. Tehran was exporting about 2.2 million barrels per day in 2011. In 2020, this figure dropped to just over 400,000 barrels per day.

Exports will slowly recover to around 1.5 million barrels per day by 2025; this figure was still well below pre-2018 levels.

The collapse of the rial was equally severe. In the mid-2010s, one dollar alone bought tens of thousands of riyals. Purchased several hundred thousand by 2025. Today, more than a million purchase it.

Sanctions have blocked much of Iran’s export capacity, while a weak currency has made imports expensive, driven up inflation and shaken investors’ confidence. Limited access to the dollar further restricted international trade.

Daily Costs

One of the most visible impacts was in aviation. After sanctions began in 1979, Iran had difficulty importing aircraft and spare parts. Plane crashes increased in the 1980s, 1990s, and early 2000s.

More than 2,000 people died in plane crashes in Iran between 1979 and 2023, according to the Bureau of Aircraft Accident Archives.

Sanctions have also transformed Iran’s economy into what analysts describe as a “sanctions economy.” Trade shifted to shadow networks, oil sales relied on middlemen, and transparency eroded.

Impact on People

Experts say Iran’s middle class is suffering the most. Data from similar countries models Iran’s economy between 2012 and 2019. Sanctions caused the middle class to shrink.

By 2012, the difference between the potential and the actual size of the middle class reached 17 percent. This gap increased to 28 points after Trump’s maximum pressure campaign began.

The sanctions led directly to the collapse of the rial, pushing large numbers of people on fixed incomes, such as teachers and civil servants, into working poverty. The downsizing of formal businesses has pushed workers into informal jobs with lower wages and fewer protections.

Research published in 2020 linked UN sanctions to a 1.2 to 1.4 year reduction in life expectancy in affected countries, with women suffering disproportionately.

Since 1970, EU and US sanctions have been linked to 38 million deaths worldwide, according to a study published last year.

In Iran, sanctions have disrupted pharmaceutical imports, and prices of essential drugs such as anti-seizure drugs have increased by up to 300 percent.

Environmental damage also followed. Sanctions have slowed clean fuel adoption and green innovation, worsened air pollution in cities like Tehran, and harmed children’s cognitive development.

As protests continue and Trump repeats his claim that he wants to help Iranians, the long economic shadow of sanctions is deeply entrenched in the crisis on Iran’s streets.