Ex Iran leader gives unemployment warning

The former Iranian President, Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, has warned that the Islamic republic risks losing the confidence of its people unless unemployment is tackled.

Speaking at Friday prayers in Tehran, Mr Rafsanjani said: We will not be able to go to an unemployed young man who has finished his studies but has no job and no food and tell him that Islam can take care of you.

He will no longer believe it, said Mr Rafsanjani.

Unemployment and inflation are high in Iran, and correspondents say President Khatami has made little headway in his attempts to reform the economy.

From the newsroom of the BBC World Service