Israel Strikes Tehran: Residents Panic as City Plunges Into Chaos
Israel strikes Tehran for a third consecutive day, fear and uncertainty grip the city. “Everyone is trying to get out — somehow, some way,” a resident told BBC News Persian, describing the mounting desperation across the capital.
By Sunday, long queues stretched across petrol stations, as people scrambled to leave Tehran for quieter, more remote areas, hoping to escape further attacks. But with traffic gridlocked, many couldn’t even make it out of the province.
“Tehran clearly isn’t safe,” said one local. “There are no alerts, no official warnings — just loud blasts and the silent hope that our building isn’t next. But where can we go? Nowhere feels safe anymore.”
The strikes have left residents trapped in fear, searching for safety amid growing chao
A resident who recently managed to flee Tehran for another province described the emotional toll of the escalating conflict:
“I don’t think I’ve fully processed that I’m living in an active war zone — and I’m not sure when I will.”
“This isn’t my war. I’m not supporting either side. I just want to survive with my family.”
Since Friday, Israel has launched its most extensive air strikes on Iran in years, prompting retaliatory missile attacks from Iran. The violence has claimed lives on both sides. Iranian health officials report 224 deaths across the country since the Israeli strikes began, while Israeli authorities say at least 19 people have been killed.
The trauma is widespread. One woman told the BBC she hasn’t been able to sleep for two nights.
“I’ve lived through some difficult times,” she said, recalling memories of the Iran-Iraq war in the 1980s.
“Back then, at least we had air raid sirens to warn us. Now there are no sirens, no alerts — just explosions.”
Younger generations, born after that war, have never experienced this level of fear and uncertainty, said BBC News Persian’s Ghoncheh Habibiazad.
Another woman in Tehran said she had thought about escaping the capital.
“We all want to go — to smaller towns or villages, anywhere safer. But many of us have loved ones who can’t leave. We think of them and stay,” she explained.
“What’s happening isn’t fair to the people of Iran. We’re all struggling to survive these days filled with fear, exhaustion, and pain.”
One man summed up the impossible situation many face:
“I can’t leave Tehran. My elderly parents can’t travel, and I can’t abandon them. I still have to show up for work. What am I supposed to do?”
