Middle East at war: Celebration, trepidation and anger: Iranians have conflicting emotions over Israeli airstrikes

The Age

8 hours ago

'I understand them both and at different times my own feelings are closer to one of these groups and then the other,' Behnaz said.
Given government repression, it can be difficult to gauge public sentiment in Iran. Polling is limited, many Iranians are unwilling to speak to foreign journalists, and those who do may hold views that aren't representative of the wider population. And if Israel widens its attacks beyond military and nuclear program targets – a possibility, given Defence Minister Israel Katz's warning on Saturday that if Iran continued to fire missiles, 'Tehran will burn' – those views could change.
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The Iranian government, meanwhile, is trying to control public reactions. The Ministry of Communications said on Friday it would temporarily limit internet access, and Iranians said they were struggling to connect using the virtual private networks that allow them to circumvent government censorship of foreign websites and applications.
Some Iranians rallied to protest against Israel and express support for the government. They held up pictures of generals and scientists who had been killed.
Participants in a pro-government demonstration on Saturday in Tehran told a state television journalist that they wanted the harshest response possible against Israel.
'We won't relent until the complete destruction of Israel,' said a woman in a black-and-white checked scarf that indicates support for Iran's security forces. 'It's not a question of revenge. Israel must be wiped off the page of time forever.'
Iranians in a protest march on Saturday against the Israeli attacks. Credit: Getty Images
A man surrounded by his wife and daughters said they had come to the rally to show 'Israel that my family, all my compatriots and I stand behind our armed forces, and whatever step they take, we will support with our lives and property'.
On the surface, several Iranians said that life in Tehran and other cities had carried on as usual during what was a holiday weekend for the nation's majority Shiite Muslims. People went to coffee shops with friends or did their shopping. Those who didn't have the day off went to work.
But behind the veneer of normality lay stress and worry – particularly among those old enough to remember Iran's protracted war with Iraq in the 1980s when cities were targeted with airstrikes.
Nima, who was a child during the Iran-Iraq War in a city that was heavily bombed, heard the sounds of missiles and air defence systems in Tehran for three or four hours overnight on Saturday.
'Tonight in Tehran, it's scarier,' he said, adding that he could hear loud booms and what appeared to be a succession of missiles fired from Iranian territory.
Some said the news appeared more frightening to those outside the country; Iranians, they said, had been through far worse.
Seventy-eight people were killed and more than 320 wounded in the initial Israeli attacks, Iran's ambassador to the United Nations said on Friday. It was unclear how many were civilians. Parnia Abbasi, a young female poet, and Mehdi Pouladvand, a competitive equestrian, had been killed with their families, Iranian media reported.
Fire and smoke rise into the sky after an Israeli attack on the Shahran oil depot in Tehran. Credit: Getty Images
But many expressed satisfaction, particularly at the deaths of top officials in the Revolutionary Guard, which plays a major role in domestic repression.
One of the men killed, Brigadier General Amir Ali Hajizadeh, headed the Revolutionary Guard's aerospace force, which shot down a Ukraine International Airlines flight in 2020, killing all 176 people on board.
Mehrdad, a 36-year-old man in the southern city of Bandar Abbas, said he had not been this happy in 10 years. 'We have no fear,' Mehrdad said. 'We know that even if there's a war that involves the [Iranian] people, it's still better than the situation we are in with this government.'
Some used the celebration of Eid al-Ghadir on Saturday to express their glee. Iranians mark the day by buying sweets and gifts for family and friends.
Elham, a 37-year-old woman in the western city of Hamedan, said she saw more Iranians happy and celebrating than during past holidays, and suspected they were using it as cover to celebrate Israel's attacks.
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Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has attempted to capitalise on that spirit. On Friday, he urged Iranians to 'stand up and let your voices be heard.'
'Israel's fight is not with you,' he said. 'Our fight is with our common enemy: The murderous regime that both oppresses you and impoverishes you.'
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