IRANIAN youngsters are being deprived of their basic rights by the effects of privatisation and a monopoly of wealth and power, according to a leading children’s rights group.

The Society to Aid Children At Risk (SACR) warned that rising poverty is forcing pupils to drop out of school and go to work to provide for their families.

Statistics show that there are around seven million child labourers in Iran, with most concentrated in small workshops where conditions are poor.