'The Streets Are Quiet. We Stay Home and Wait.'
For young people in Tehran, daily life has been reduced to a terrifying routine: check the news for strike updates, shelter when sirens sound, and try to find some semblance of normalcy in between. The BBC spoke to several Iranians this week who described a city transformed by 13 days of US and Israeli strikes.
"The streets are near-empty," one 26-year-old Tehran resident told the BBC. "Shops are mostly closed. People go out only when absolutely necessary. We have no idea when the next strike will come."
Power outages have become frequent as infrastructure targets have been hit. Air strikes on oil facilities near the capital have created what residents describe as "black rain", a sooty fallout from burning petroleum facilities that coats windows and cars.
Ottawa's Iranian Community Watches Anxiously
For Ottawa's sizable Iranian diaspora, one of the largest communities of Iranian Canadians in the country, the news from home has been devastating. Community members describe frantically trying to reach family members in Tehran, Karaj, Isfahan, and other cities being targeted.
"My mother is in Tehran. She tells me she cannot sleep. Every night there are explosions," said one Ottawa resident originally from Iran. "We call as often as we can, but sometimes the phone lines go down."
The Iranian Cultural Society of Ottawa has organized community gatherings for people to come together for mutual support. Several Ottawa mosques with Iranian congregations have held special prayers.
The Human Cost of the War
Beyond the geopolitical implications, the BBC's reporting from Tehran reveals the profound human cost being paid by ordinary Iranians who had little say in the regime's actions that triggered the conflict. Many young Iranians describe a deep ambivalence, resentment of the Islamic Republic, but also fear and anger at the scale of destruction being wrought on their country.
"I don't support the regime. Most young people don't," said one 24-year-old woman. "But this is my city. These are my streets. When I see buildings destroyed, I don't feel liberated. I feel grief."
Human rights organizations have documented significant civilian casualties in the strikes, while the US and Israel maintain they are targeting military infrastructure and the regime's weapons programs.
Canada has called for restraint and the protection of civilian lives, while stopping short of condemning the US-Israeli campaign outright. Ottawa's government is also dealing with calls from Iranian-Canadians to help expedite family reunification for those trying to flee.
Source: BBC News
