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Khamenei says manipulating numbers on economy is 'major sin'

In a meeting with officials responsible for issuing statistical reports, Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei warned against manipulation of statistics.
EDITORS' NOTE: Reuters and other foreign media are subject to Iranian restrictions on their ability to report, film or take pictures in Tehran.

Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei delivers a sermon during Friday prayers at Tehran University June 19, 2009. Khamenei on Friday demanded an end to street protests that have shaken the country since a disputed presidential election a week ago and said any bloodshed would be their leaders' fault.   REUTERS/Morteza Nikoubazl (IRAN POLITICS ELECTIONS RELIGI
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Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei warned Iranian officials against manipulating statistics when it comes to the economy. In attendance at the speech were members of the Hassan Rouhani administration, who have been at the center of a minor controversy over economic growth.

“Sometimes various centers state different statistics about the unemployment rate, the rate of inflation or the economic growth, and this issue causes the people to lose confidence,” Khamenei told members of the Supreme Statistics Council, the General Census of Population and Housing and the directors of the Statistical Center of Iran. The highest-ranking official present from the administration was Mohammad-Bagher Nobakht, who heads the Planning and Budget Organization.

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