Iranians describe fear and confusion while Israeli air strikes hit Tehran

While the Israeli air strikes beat Tehran this week, including a direct blow to the headquarters of Iranian state television – residents of the capital described a city seized by fear and confusion.

In exclusive comments to Fox News Digital, an independent journalist based in Tehran, who held their name for fear of reprisals, said: “I hate the Islamic Republic, but my country is attacked. Our house was trembling in explosions and missiles an hour while I was in the editorial hall covering the news. We are in a war zone.”

According to the journalist, the Israeli strike on the Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting (IRIB) struck hard – physically and symbolically.

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Amongling the Iran flag above the Tehran horizon line at sunset. (istock)

“The studio that was bombed yesterday is part of the state diffuser of the regime, a propaganda spokesperson who has never represented the people. For years, we imagined the fall of Irib as the last chapter of the collapse of the Islamic Republic. But yesterday, for a few minutes, we were all in shock,” they said. “Ordinary people do not watch the regime’s television, but the attack at the origin of this seemed strangely symbolic – as the world changed.”

Another independent Iranian journalist ironically added: “I watched the video of the television channel bombed in difficulty again and again, and I could not stop laughing.”

A missile struck the network of news from the Islamic Republic of Iran (Irinn) during a live broadcast showing the destruction of the studio and the journalist who escapes safely. (Rear jaap / nurphoto via getty images)

Despite chaos, journalists like them are still trying to introduce themselves. “We do not know the exact number of victims, and even government figures are not trustworthy. We cannot access attack sites – the security forces repel us. And the repression against journalists has only won.”

Internet access has been widely cut. “Most of the time, the Internet does not work at all,” they added. “But we are trying to continue.”

Another Tehran resident told Fox News Digital that they had only learned about the magnitude of the attacks after having briefly returned to internet access. “I was hiding during the bombing. I didn’t know what was going on. Did the United States intervene? Will it continue?” They asked.

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People meet in the street the day after Israeli strikes, in Tehran, Iran, June 13, 2025. (Press agency in Western Asia via Reuters)

The confusion comes as Washington gets rid of joining the conflict militarily or pursuing a diplomatic resolution in Tehran. Some members of the Trump administration would have favored an agreement to avoid a new escalation, while others plead for a more energetic position.

Meanwhile, President Trump’s message was apparently seen by the Iranians when he urged civilians to evacuate Tehran. On Truth Social yesterday, “Iran cannot have a nuclear weapon. I said it again and again! Everyone should immediately evacuate Tehran!”

The result would have been rapid, resulting in a massive exodus of the capital. “People are terrified,” said a Tehran resident. “They lock their doors and flee the city. The roads are packed. But for those of us who stay – it is not easy either. All night, we hear missiles, bombings, explosions.”

“I don’t want to leave my house. But yes, I’m afraid,” they added.

DEPOSIT. The Iranians got up in 2022 against the regime. In this photo taken by a person not employed by the Associated Press and obtained by the AP outside Iran shows that the students of the University of Sharif technology attend a demonstration triggered by the death of Mahsa Amini, 22, under the police of the country’s morality, in Tehran, Friday, October 7, 2022. (Photo ap)

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They also answered Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who urged the Iranians on Monday to get up, saying: “No one thought that Assad’s regime would fall, but he did.”

“Do you bomb a city of ten million and tell people to get up?” Adding: “When people are under fire, they don’t start a revolution – they refer or run away.”