Ali Karimi: Throw the Fitr Donations in the Trash

Ali Karimi: Throw your alms into the trash bin

Ali Karimi, a well-known Iranian footballer, posted a story on his Instagram saying, ‘This year, throw your alms into the trash bin. The trash bin feeds the hungry more than any other institution.’

Mr. Karimi is referring to trash scavenging, which, according to statistics, has increased several times over the past few years due to widespread poverty in Iran.

According to Tehran Municipality statistics in 2021, several thousand children in Tehran are engaged in trash scavenging.

However, government officials support putting alms in the Imam Khomeini Relief Committee’s boxes, which is a governmental institution.

Last year, an official from the Imam Khomeini Relief Committee announced that the alms collected in the country had surpassed one trillion tomans.

This is while there is a lot of criticism regarding the Relief Committee’s performance.

In recent years, especially in major cities, public trust in the Relief Committee has decreased, while non-governmental charitable organizations like the Imam Ali Society have gained more public support.