Fear and a sense of deep abandonment are the feelings that prevail among Iranians after the massive demonstrations that, in recent weeks, have shaken the Islamic Republic and have been . Fear for what has been seen, what has been experienced and for the possible retaliation that may be taken against those who tell it. And abandonment of the international community. Especially , who until just a few days ago asked Iranians to continue protesting and promised that “help” was “on the way.”
Her heels echo through the hotel lobby every time the woman gets up from the table where she sits, in a secluded corner, next to two men in dark suits. She also wears a black suit, her head covered by a light veil, which reveals the front part of her hair, and she gives orders over the phone in Turkish and Persian. He is a senior official at the Consulate General of Iran in Van, capital of the Turkish province of the same name, where the main border crossing between Iran and Türkiye is located.
And in this hotel, like in many others in the city, Iranians stay who are leaving their country these days: to take a flight abroad – suspended from Iranian territory – or to flee repression. And they are afraid. If they do, they tell what they experienced in whispers, looking sideways, with suspicions about who is listening. It has happened before Iranian dissidents. “Everything is under control,” says the consular representative with a somewhat forced smile when asked by this journalist about the situation in her country and the arrival of Iranians to Turkey: “Everything is going to go very well.”
Of course, the numerous Iranians with whom EL PAÍS has spoken in recent days at the Kapiköy border crossing and in the city of Van agree in pointing out that calm has prevailed, even if it is military hand. “At the intersections of the main avenues [de Teherán] “There are well-armed government forces and no type of public gathering is tolerated,” says Reza, who is middle-aged and has left the country in the last week. They also agree that there have hardly been any protests since silence fell over the country – with the internet and telephone lines being cut off – and the brutal repression was unleashed on January 8 and 9. “That’s why they cut off the internet, so they could kill at will,” explains Zahra, from Tehran, whose name has been changed. —like that of the rest of the testimonies— to protect their identity.
Reza watched from his home as the police shot point-blank at protesters with sawed-off shotguns, less accurate and more lethal than normal ones. Ali, a young man in his twenties who participated in the protests in Varamín, on the outskirts of Tehran, also saw the police use the same weapon, as well as knives to attack the protesters. “I had to run to save my life, but I wouldn’t mind putting it at risk again if there are new protests, or even dying. If I die, it will be fighting for my country,” he says.
The Oslo-based organization has documented at least 3,428 dead protesters, although other organizations put the figure above 10,000. “We have experienced other revolts, but this time it has been different, this time they have killed many more people,” says Zeynab, another Iranian who was caught outside the country by the protests but who stayed in contact with Tehran through acquaintances who had access to the Starlink satellites: “On previous occasions you knew someone who knew someone else who in turn knew someone who had been killed. This time we all know someone dead. This regime has to fall.”
Alí, who has also participated in previous protests such as those in 2022, or in 2019, explains the dilemma they face: “70% of Iranians oppose this regime. The problem is that the 30% who support it are those who have the weapons.” For this reason, he assures, he is in favor of an intervention from abroad that ends with the Supreme Leader, Ali Khamenei, and the Revolutionary Guard, the main armed support of the regime. However, when informed of Trump’s latest change of heart regarding Iran (he ruled out intervention for the moment over the weekend), the young man lets out, in English, a resounding “Fuck him!” (fuck him).
“Trump wants to make a pact with the Government of Iran, he doesn’t care about the people,” laments Reza. Zeynab thinks the same: “They have left us alone, no one cares about us.” Although he also warns that bombings are not the solution: “We Iranians are a proud nation, we do not want this Government, but neither do we want Israel to attack us or invade us.”
What’s more, Zahra, older and who lived through the Islamic Revolution of 1979 as a child, believes that an external attack would only strengthen the ayatollahs, “as would the sanctions, which the regime uses as an excuse for everything that goes wrong.” In reality, “Trump, the Netanyahu regime and that of Iran need each other, because they feed off each other,” he adds.
The other serious problem facing the Iranian revolts—constant outbursts of anger and frustration against an ossified regime that are repeated with increasing frequency—is the lack of leadership or program. That is why, Reza argues, he did not join the protests this time: “I want democracy and freedom, not shouting ‘death to Khamenei’ or anyone else. I don’t want a bloodbath. I was also disappointed that they shouted Pahlavi’s name.”
Reza Pahlevi II, son of the last shah and exiled in the United States, was erected precisely after co-opting the popular revolution that ended the Pahlavi dictatorship in 1979. Ali, at 25 years old, and despite the fact that his parents continue to defend the Islamic Republic, is a declared fan of the shah’s son: “When Pahlevi returns, Iran will be a great country for everyone. I watch videos from his father’s time and you can see that there was a good life. Not like now, when my money is worthless, and that millions of Iranians have to live abroad.”
“I think there are television channels like Manoto [emiten desde el extranjero]which promote an idealized image of the imperial era, and that seems attractive to young people,” emphasizes Reza. He, like almost all of those interviewed, will return to Iran. With fear of what may happen to them, and contained hopes that new revolts will rise against the regime, perhaps definitively.
