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Tehran was quiet in the early hours of June 13, 2025. Then, at about 3 a.m., Israeli bombs began falling on the Iranian capital, opening a 12-day exchange of attacks between Israel and Iran amid concerns about Iran’s nuclear program.

Iman*, who was living in Tehran with her family, slept through the first explosions. Messages from friends outside Iran alerted her to the attack.

“I was really confused until my dad and I turned on the news, and we spoke with my mom, who was staying at my grandmother’s home,” Iman said.

Her mother and grandmother were near one of the bombing sites. They could hear explosions as people screamed in the streets.

As the attacks continued and communications failed, residents began fleeing Tehran. Iman’s family relocated to a vacation home outside the city.

With few stores nearby, shoppers rushed to stock up on supplies. Iman compared the panic buying to the early days of the pandemic. The family had no Wi-Fi, and messages from relatives abroad often could not get through.

Leaving Tehran did not put the family beyond the sound of the conflict.

“The last night [of the 12-day attacks] was the worst night, and the noises of the bombings were so loud that the ground was shaking,” Iman said.

After sleeping for several hours, she awoke to news that a ceasefire had been announced. President Donald Trump declared a ceasefire between Iran and Israel, and the attacks ended June 25.

Iman’s family waited another night before returning to Tehran. The abrupt transition from bombardment to daily life felt unreal, she said. Destroyed buildings remained visible as she met with friends, but residents had little choice except to continue with their lives.

A month later, Iman’s family moved to the United States as previously planned. By the time they departed, she said, life in Iran had largely returned to normal.

Other students experienced the conflict from thousands of miles away. Junior Allen Mirzayan was vacationing in Spain with his family when the attacks began. His grandmother had been expected to meet them there, but they initially could not contact her in Tehran.

“The entire time I was in Spain, I was trying to relax, but I was scared for my grandmother,” Mirzayan said.

Communication resumed after his grandmother left Tehran for another town. During each call, she reassured the family that she was safe.

“Soon, everything ended up being fine, and I’m grateful for that,” Mirzayan said.

Economic anger fuels new unrest

Months after the attacks ended, turmoil returned to Tehran. Protests beginning in late December spread beyond the capital as Iranians confronted rising inflation and a collapsing currency.

“The prices have gotten high, and people can’t really afford anything there, so people started protesting,” Iman said.

She said the demonstrations also reflect demands for political and religious freedom, including the ability to criticize the government or reject Islam without risking arrest.

Authorities responded by shutting down internet access, again separating families inside Iran from relatives abroad.

Mahmoud* said his mother went nearly a month without speaking to most of their family in Iran. They eventually reached cousins who had installed a virtual private network to bypass the restrictions.

“They were sharing stories about how the whole city shuts down every night because the protests have been huge,” Mahmoud said.

Although much of Iran’s population is Muslim, Mahmoud said religious identity does not necessarily translate into support for the Islamic government. He accused officials of invoking religion to control residents and portray dissent as opposition to God.

Some demonstrators have rallied around Reza Pahlavi, the son of Iran’s last shah, whose monarchy ended during the 1979 Islamic Revolution. Mahmoud said nostalgia for the former monarchy could generate support for Pahlavi, but he cautioned against selecting a leader solely because of family lineage.

“We should pick someone who’s the most capable of leading the country,” he said.

The unrest has brought a heavy human cost. The Human Rights Activists News Agency reported more than 6,200 confirmed deaths since the protests began, with another 17,000 cases under investigation.

Hira* described watching television reports of deaths and destruction as heartbreaking. While blaming Iran’s leaders for the crisis, she also expressed concern that the country could fall under the influence of the United States and Israel.

Trump issued a public statement Jan. 11 addressing the possibility of U.S. military intervention in response to the protests. Mahmoud argued that humanitarian assistance and expanded internet access would help Iranians more than another military operation.

“[Military intervention] would only escalate the situation,” he said.

With Iran’s political future uncertain, students with ties to the country hope the violence ends without erasing its identity.

“What is often misunderstood is [how] beautiful of a country Iran is despite all of these conflicts,” Hira said. “Iran has beautiful art and a fascinating history. I hope people look beyond Iran being this broken place that the news portrays and more deeply into its history and culture.”