Iran: Facing a severe water crisis, the Islamic regime channels water supplies to religious centers

Image: Jihad Watch

In Tehran’s upscale Jannat Abad district, the Ansar al-Mahdi mosque’s pool glistens under the sun, with water flowing freely into it—a striking image of abundance in a city struggling through its worst water crisis in decades.

Just a short distance away, local residents receive stern notices urging them to cut their water usage by 20 percent. Government officials warn that without urgent conservation, Tehran will soon face strict water rationing. The mosque’s pool has become an emblem of the contradictions and inequities in Iran’s water management policies.

While everyday citizens are being asked to make sacrifices, Iran’s vast network of religious institutions, military facilities, and seminaries—numbering 157,967 nationwide—collectively consume an estimated 80 million cubic meters of water annually in Tehran alone. These entities enjoy full exemptions from paying water bills, even though supplying the city requires the government to spend billions importing water from distant reservoirs. The exemptions apply to the main worship and operational areas but not to affiliated commercial properties, and there is no official system in place to monitor their consumption.

Some institutions have taken this privilege further. The Ansar al-Mahdi mosque constructed a decorative pool despite the water emergency, while a school near the Ministry of Culture and Islamic Guidance followed suit. Such examples highlight a growing public frustration: when state-aligned institutions consume freely, calls for citizens to save water ring hollow.

“When institutions that symbolize the government are exempt from paying utility bills, it’s natural for people not to take conservation appeals seriously,” said Saeed Peivandi, a sociologist at France’s University of Lorraine who specializes in Iranian society.

Even the Ministry of Energy has acknowledged that most of Tehran’s 2,611 active mosques are high electricity consumers, yet it has never disclosed data on their water usage. This opacity deepens public skepticism about whether conservation demands are applied fairly.

The crisis extends far beyond the capital. Across Iran, 50 cities and 24 provinces are now grappling with severe water stress. Major urban centers such as Isfahan, Arak, Saveh, Tabriz, Baneh, and Bandar Abbas have joined Tehran at critical levels of shortage. Experts warn that without systemic reform—addressing not just household consumption but also institutional waste—Iran risks facing a prolonged period of water scarcity that could severely affect public life, agriculture, and industry.

(This Article was originally published by Jihad Watch)