“Our lives do not care about the government”: what the inhabitants of Iran live after the worst attacks of Israel in years

A woman tells the BBC that she has not been able to sleep in two days: “I have gone through really difficult situations.”

She points out that the current situation reminds her of what she lived during the bloody war between her country and Iraq in the 1980s, when she was a girl, and left hundreds of thousands of dead during the eight years that the conflict lasted.

“The difference is that at that time, at least when an attack was going to happen, we could hear the sirens that alert us about what was going to happen. But now, during the bombings or air attacks, there is no alarm system,” he explains.

“It seems that they (the authorities) do not care our lives now,” he adds.

Ghcheh Habibiazad, journalist of the Persian service of the BBC, notes that the youngest, born after the war, do not know how it was to live something like that.

Another resident of Tehran says: “I had to drive away from home to find a gas station, because there were long queues in front of each one.”

Some in the city are even moving, “far from where any official lives.”

The Internet connection has been unstable, so it is very difficult to keep in touch with people within the country, says the BBC journalist.

Many who live outside the country send messages to their loved ones, waiting for an answer.

A woman in Tehran says she has considered leaving the city to escape the attacks.

“We have all wanted to go to smaller cities. (…) or villages, to anywhere we can go, but each of us has loved ones that cannot leave, and we think of them,” he says.

“What we are living is not fair for any of us, the people of Iran,” he adds.

It also states that Iranians seem “paralyzed.”

“We regret that the leaders of our country do not care about any of us or our lives, and we are all trying to overcome these days with fear, exhaustion and a lot of stress; this is extremely hard and painful,” he continues to say.

Another resident of Tehran states: “I can't leave Tehran without more. I can't leave my elderly parents, who can't travel far, and leave the city. Besides, I have to go to work. What can I do now?”

Some Iranians have received warnings from the Israeli army, which asks everyone to leave areas close to military facilities.

Tehran's inhabitants seem to be very worried about this.

“Yes, unfortunately, I've seen it,” says one. “How are we supposed to know where a military installation is and where not?” He asks.

The Israeli prime minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, urged the Iranians to rise and overthrow the government, in a message sent on the second day of the attacks.

Until now, however, people in the country have chosen to stay safe and there is little evidence that Netanyahu's call has resonated in the field, says Daryoush Karimi, of the Persian service of the BBC.

What perhaps more shocked people in Iran was the destruction of residential buildings, even more than attacks on nuclear facilities and air bases, says Pouyan Kalani, a journalist of the Persian service of the BBC; Something that neither the general population nor the officials had planned.

Images of a dead child under the debris, with a teddy bear covered with dust dusty on the street and a notebook of sketches scattered on the ground were scenes that many Iranians had not witnessed since the end of the war between Iran and Iraq, especially in the streets of the capital.

An attack of this guy against Tehran caused that many of those who saw themselves in the “first combat line” wondered what exactly was happening, how widespread it was and how their families could protect themselves.

Iranian authorities also did not explain why the country's air defense system was so ineffective that Israel could bombard critical objectives in a matter of hours.

For hours after the first Israeli attack in the early hours of Friday, and even more than a day later, no official institution in Iran offered public information or explanation to help people understand the true magnitude of Israeli attacks or how to respond.

Many wondered: Has the country entered war?

Virtually all the officials who appeared on state television spoke in a tone that suggested that “nothing serious” had happened, insisting that everything was “under control” and that the cities were “safe and quiet.”

No authority explained how the Israeli Aeornaves had apparently flown freely, without resistance, all the way to Tehran and other cities to attack their goals.

But on Friday afternoon, after the publication of two statements by the supreme leader of Iran, one written and another on video, presenters and commentators of state media programs began to proclaim a “severe revenge.”

In his video message, Ayatolá Ali Jamenei declared that “the Armed Forces will act strongly and bend to the vile Zionist regime.”

At dusk, Iranian ballistic missiles were launched towards Tel Aviv, Israel, and Iranian state media began to broadcast scenes from the city live, showing what seemed to be missiles impacting the center of Tel Aviv.

These images served as a backdrop for interviews with analysts who explained how Iranian missiles had penetrated Israeli defenses, giving a “lesson” and a series of “strong responses.”

In this way, the narrative of victory was molded, and even the sound of anti -aircraft sirens in Tel Aviv was presented as a fear signal.

All this happened while Israeli attacks against Iranian nuclear air bases and facilities in Natanz, Fordow and Isfahán continued, and the first hour on Saturday morning, hostile drones continued to fly over Tehran.

In addition to those who rushed to go to gas stations, others talked about buying bread or storing rice and oil in case there was scarcity.

Several hours later, Iranian Interior Minister went to the public in the state media and offered recommendations: “Keep calm; avoid feeding anxiety; they only trust official sources; abstain unnecessary travel; and cooperate with emergency services.”

However, these statements sounded rather as demands to control disturbances.

Apart from the announcement of the death of several high controls of the body of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard and nuclear scientists, the only official information came in the form of partial reports of the media: limited details about attacks on military and nuclear facilities, and figures of uncoordinated victims published by provincial governors or local officials of the red crescent.

On the other hand, the news agencies were filled with statements from officials, religious associations and various institutions, all echoing the narrative of an “oppressed but resilient nation”, argued the continuity of the “axis of resistance” (Iran's regional allies) and asked the supreme leader to guarantee “severe reprisals.”

However, even after reviewing these reports, it was still impossible to determine how attacks of this magnitude could be carried out, how many officials and scientists died, how many civilians died, what specific facilities were attacked, the real magnitude of the damage and if Tehran and other cities remained safe.

Alexandra Fouché edition

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