Iran's health minister resigns over proposed budget cuts Iranian state TV says the health minister has resigned over spending cuts in a budget submitted to parliament last week

TEHRAN, Iran -- Iranian state TV says the health minister has resigned over spending cuts in a budget submitted to parliament last week.

It says President Hassan Rouhani accepted Health Minister Hassan Ghazizadeh Hashemi's resignation on Thursday.

Iran is in the grip of an economic crisis and has seen sporadic protests in recent months as officials try to downplay the effects of renewed U.S. sanctions.

The $47.5 billion budget is less than half the size of last year's, mainly due to the severe depreciation of the local currency following President Donald Trump's decision to withdraw from the 2015 nuclear deal with world powers.

The U.S. has restored crippling sanctions in recent months, including on Iran's energy and banking sectors.