Ottawa's Iranian Community Grapples With Hope and Fear After Airstrikes
Ottawa is home to one of Canada's largest Iranian-Canadian communities, and this week that community has been living through a moment of profound uncertainty. Following U.S. and Israeli airstrikes on Iran, local residents are processing a complicated mix of emotions — relief, fear, hope, and grief — often all at once.
A Community Divided
For Iranians who fled the Islamic Republic and built new lives in Ottawa, the military strikes represent something deeply personal. Some residents CBC Ottawa spoke with expressed guarded hope that the strikes could accelerate a political transition in Iran, potentially creating conditions for the kind of change that millions of Iranians have been demanding for years.
But hope is shadowed by fear. Most Ottawa Iranians still have family in Iran — parents, siblings, cousins — who are living through the strikes in real time. For those with loved ones in Tehran and other cities, the past days have meant sleepless nights and frantic phone calls trying to confirm that everyone is safe.
"We Want Freedom, Not War"
Many in Ottawa's Iranian diaspora are quick to distinguish between wanting the end of the Islamic Republic and supporting military action that puts civilian lives at risk. The sentiment heard repeatedly is a version of the same thing: we want freedom for Iran, but not this way. The strikes have reignited debates about how change in Iran can and should come about — and what role, if any, foreign military force should play.
A Long Road to Ottawa
Ottawa's Iranian community has deep roots. Many residents arrived following the 1979 revolution, while others came during the 1980s war with Iraq, or during successive waves of political repression. More recently, protests following the death of Mahsa Amini in 2022 prompted another wave of immigration. These are people who know intimately what it means to live under the regime the strikes targeted.
What Comes Next
Community leaders are calling for space to process this moment together. Vigils and informal gatherings have been quietly organized across the city. Whatever one's view on the strikes, the consensus in Ottawa's Iranian community seems to be this: the Iranian people — not foreign powers — should determine Iran's future.
Source: CBC Ottawa
