Williams is a freelance journalist covering international affairs, humanitarian issues and women’s rights. Her work has been published in The Guardian, Time Magazine, BBC News, Foreign Policy and Al Jazeera, among others. She has reported from Iraq, Lebanon, Armenia, Turkey, Ukraine and Sri Lanka. Follow her on X.
A dust storm swept through Tehran Tuesday morning, cloaking the city of 10 million, and bringing with it reduced visibility and worse air quality. But it also brought a fragile ceasefire between Israel and Iran after a bloody 12-day war. While peace appears to be holding, Iranians are bracing themselves—not only for more bombs but a wave of repression from the Islamic Republic as Iranians struggle to cope with the impacts of the fighting.
"We are full of fear and anxiety," says Hana,* an activist and journalist in Tehran. "To me, the ceasefire looks more like an economic deal—if it doesn't go through, we will be left in an even worse situation," she says. "But if it does go through, Iran's civil society will be at serious risk of relentless suppression."
The Islamic Republic has arrested over 700 people on suspicion of spying for Israel, according to the state-run Fars News Agency. Hana argues that executions are next.
"As always, political prisoners will be the first victims."
At least six men have been executed for charges of spying for Israel in the last ten days, including three Kurdish men executed on Wednesday, according to Iran Human Rights. Ahmadreza Jalali, an Iranian-Swedish political prisoner previously sentenced to death, was transferred to an unknown location on June 24. Meanwhile, the prominent Iranian human rights activist and blogger, Hossein Ronaghi, was arrested after calling for the release of all political prisoners during the war, arguing that the Islamic Republic bears full responsibility for any harm that comes to them.
Hana says the Israeli attack on the notorious Evin Prison—where many political prisoners and dissidents are held—was a "crime against humanity." At least 16 people were reportedly killed. One former inmate wrote in Iran International that she fears "the new bars that will rise where the old ones fell.
"This is not deliverance," she said.
The sky in Tehran—although clogged with dust—is free from bombs. But how long will that last? The situation remains volatile, with both Iran and Israel accusing the other of violations in the early stages of the U.S.-brokered ceasefire. Israel's track record of adhering to ceasefires is abysmal, as it has continued to sporadically bomb Lebanon despite a November 2024 ceasefire with Hezbollah.
As for Iran, Hana says the ceasefire depends on how unified the Islamic Republic is on the agreement. "The factional divisions within the regime are very deep, and they've only intensified after the war. Some rogue elements might take actions that violate the ceasefire."
For her, peace is "far from guaranteed."
The Israeli onslaught, beginning on June 13, was unprovoked and illegal. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu claimed that Iran could produce a nuclear weapon "in a very short time," contradicting both U.S. intelligence assessments and the head of the U.N.'s nuclear watchdog (IAEA), who claimed that it has no proof of a "systematic effort to move into a nuclear weapon."
Iran has long maintained that its nuclear program is peaceful. The U.S. and Iran were engaged in nuclear negotiations before Israel's surprise attack, which targeted Iran's chief negotiator and the top echelons of the country's military.
Hana woke to the walls of her house shaking on the first night of the Israeli strikes. "One of the targets was very close to our home," she says. "Some of our kitchen items fell from the impact."
The Islamic Republic has arrested over 700 people on suspicion of spying for Israel, according to the state-run Fars News Agency. Hana argues that executions are next.
- Jessie Williams
She proceeded to walk around the city, witnessing "20 children trapped under the rubble in the Nobonyad area of Tehran. Ten of them were killed." Israeli strikes killed at least 610, with more than 4,700 wounded. In Israel, Iranian strikes killed 28 people and injured 3,000.
Israel stepped up its bombing campaign up to and after the ceasefire, pummelling Tehran. An anonymous source inside the capital described it as "a nightmare—every moment we expected to be struck by a missile."
Both Netanyahu and U.S. President Donald Trump previously suggested the idea of regime change in Iran, although Trump later denied this was the aim of the strikes. "Neither Israel nor any foreign power can be our savior; all they do is contribute to the destruction of our country. And that's exactly what the Islamic Republic has been doing for over 40 years," Hana says.
"The only real way forward for my people is through civil movements—which, unfortunately, have been crushed by the government."
Shima*, a 37-year-old woman living in Tehran's District 3, evacuated the city last week after receiving a warning from the Israeli military. Soon after, an Israeli strike hit the nearby national television and radio headquarters.
"I know a lot of people who have been affected," she says. Her close relatives' home was destroyed when Israel targeted a nuclear science professor living in the same building. Those relatives experienced the 1980 Iran-Iraq war, resurfacing old trauma amid the new Middle East conflict.
"I feel shattered in my heart because I feel like we are being stripped out of our agency, our will and our choices, and decisions are being made for us, and we are paying the price with our blood."
"People expect us to be silent victims", Shima says, adding that "these situations are decided by super right-wing, aggressive politicians from outside and inside Iran." Every time she hears a bomb, she constantly checks her Telegram, praying that the explosion has not affected her family or friends, "but at the same time, you know that it affects other people as well."
"Outrage" is how Shima describes the general mood, but she emphasizes that "there is not one Iranian people." The population is diverse, encompassing a wide range of different perspectives. Some are staunchly pro-regime and others ardently oppose it, with individuals even cheering on the Israeli attacks. One anonymous source in Iran initially thanked Israel for killing "criminals in the regime," which he says, "brought us so much happiness."
Thousands fled the country last week amid the heavy bombardments. Unlike Israel, there are no designated bomb shelters, and air raid sirens rarely activate to warn civilians. Those who could leave went to stay with relatives in the countryside or escaped to neighboring countries.
Before the ceasefire, photos on social media depicted never-ending lines of standstill traffic on highways. Some gas stations imposed restrictions, limiting purchases to 10 liters of gas per car amid dwindling fuel supplies. "It took us a long time to get out of the city," says Shima.
"It was like a quarantine situation, where the city is empty and you see people carrying their suitcases, hugging each other, crying and getting in their cars."
Many headed to neighboring Armenia and Azerbaijan, including Saman's* mother, a 63-year-old dual British-Iranian national living in Windsor. She was almost halfway through a 10-week trip, visiting friends and family across Iran when the war began. Saman, a 32-year-old man also based in Windsor, says the family was "very tense" last week as they waited to hear news from her.
But after persuading her to leave the country, she faced problems. Bus services had sold out, fuel was in short supply and it was difficult to find "trustworthy and reliable people to take you all the way to the border," he says. Fortunately, a friend connected her with a group in Tehran that had hired a van to Armenia. The ticket was five times more expensive than usual, and the journey to the border took 15 hours—normally an 8-9-hour drive.
Saman says he is "very grateful" she escaped the country, but he is disappointed with how other countries have responded to Israel's attack. "The international community has really not done much to stop Israel, and even if they have certain views about Iran's regime, international law exists for the whole world and it doesn't seem to be being upheld," he says.
"Specifically, the U.K. government is not doing what they should be doing." Prime Minister Keir Starmer has repeatedly stated that Israel has a right to defend itself, expressing concern about Iran's nuclear program. He has also urged de-escalation among all parties involved in the conflict.
The United States joined the war on June 22, launching direct strikes on three nuclear facilities inside Iran, which Trump claimed were "obliterated." Conflicting reports challenge his claim, reflecting a potential manipulation of intelligence to support the Trump administration's foreign policy goals. Hana says she couldn't ignore the echoes of the 2003 U.S.-led invasion and occupation of Iraq, which began after former U.S. President George W. Bush falsely claimed that Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein possessed weapons of mass destruction.
If a similar scenario plays out in Iran, "my country will be destroyed and we will lose everything," she says. But there are hopes that with the ceasefire, and with many in Trump's "America First" movement firmly against involvement in foreign wars, this conflict will truly end with a return to the negotiating table.
As the dust settles, the people of Iran await what will happen next. They bear the brunt of this violence—inside and outside the country. It will leave lasting scars.
"The damage from this war will stay with the people—physically, mentally and financially," says Hana.
*Name changed to protect identity
