Iran's two biggest steel producers halted operations on Tuesday after workers walked out in protest, according to company statements. Mobarakeh Steel Company and Hormozgan Steel Company confirmed the shutdowns, citing strikes that began over unpaid wages and benefits. The stoppages affected thousands of employees and disrupted production at facilities in Isfahan and Hormozgan provinces. A spokesperson for Iran's health ministry separately reported that the Pasteur Institute of Iran in Tehran was struck on March 23, calling the incident "a direct assault on international health security" and a violation of the Geneva Conventions.
When Iran's health ministry calls an attack on the Pasteur Institute "a direct assault on international health security," that means the strike on the Geneva Conventions is deliberate, not accidental. The fact that the country's largest steel plants are now idle only deepens the crisis, showing how sanctions and mismanagement have pushed workers and institutions to the breaking point.
