Fear and shock in Iran: ‘I'm constantly afraid a missile might hit my home'
The greatest impact of this war is fear and anxiety. We don't know whether this situation will last for weeks, months or even years. Our lives have been thrown off routine, I spend most of my time just reading the news. I'm constantly afraid that a missile might hit my home, my city or the homes of my relatives and friends in other places.
I get the news from X and Instagram because we don't have any reliable news networks and broadcasts that are not censored by the regime. We follow the updates through videos shared by people from different parts of the country on social media. The internet in Iran has become very slow and it was completely down yesterday [Wednesday].
My workplace is in Tehran. I left the city on Saturday, two days after the attacks began. My home is in the east of the city, in the Tehranpars area, which has been repeatedly hit by missiles.
It was very difficult [to get out] because gasoline was rationed – each person is allowed only 25 litres – and at every gas station we had to beg and plead to get more fuel.
We had to go south through Natanz. The Natanz nuclear facilities have been bombed and we don't know if there is a risk of radiation or not. The government does not tell us this.
After Saturday, leaving Tehran became even harder. There is heavy traffic on the roads out of the city and the road to Qom, one of the main exit routes, was bombed.
I left in my car with my friends. There are no longer any buses, trains or flights on these routes and if someone doesn't have a car, they can't leave.
Many of my friends and colleagues weren't able to leave Tehran. Some have pets, some don't have a car and many don't have the money or a place to stay in other cities. One of my friends' mothers is very old and cannot be moved. Another friend is a nurse and can't leave her job.
If everyone is forced to leave the capital, the entire country will come to a halt. The banks, government offices and almost everything else depends on Tehran.
I'm now in Kerman where I also have family. Fortunately, we haven't had any bombings so far. Kerman is currently safe but there are military facilities and ammunition depots here as well, and such sites have been bombed in other cities across the country.
Inflation has skyrocketed. The price of all food items has shockingly doubled or even tripled and not even a full week has passed since the war began.
Many food products are no longer as easily available as before – for example, fruit that used to be brought in from other provinces – because no truck drivers are willing to travel on intercity roads. Rice, chicken, meat and fruit have doubled in price.
Dairy products have gone up by 20% but all of these items are still available, just with less variety than before. However, I know that the situation in Tehran is much worse.
Due to business closures, there is also a high chance we won't receive our salaries. My next fear is the high cost of living and not having enough money.
I work for a company that [works internationally]. We haven't completely shut down but in practice we can no longer operate because all the embassies processing visas have closed. If these conditions continue, our company will be completely shut down and I will lose my job.
Our situation in Iran is very complicated. Many people oppose the regime. For years we have been striving to change this government but the government arrests, suppresses and executes us.
At the same time, we absolutely do not want war either. War kills civilians, destroys our infrastructure, causes poverty and inflation and sets the country back.
But now that this war – against the will of the Iranian people – is destroying our lives, we at least hope it will lead to regime change.
My biggest fear? That if the war continues, more civilians will be killed, more infrastructure will be destroyed and in the end the government will still not change. That would be the worst outcome.
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