Iranians fleeing cities under attack seek refuge in the countryside

Terrified by explosions shaking their homes in Tehran and other cities, tens of thousands of Iranians have packed up and left, finding refuge in small, remote towns to wait out massive bombardment by Israel and the United States.

Pouya Akhgari, 22, is holed up in a family house with aunts and cousins in a village 200 kilometers from his home in Tehran. As snow falls in the mountainous countryside of Zanjan province, he mostly spends his days watching movies and TV shows, occasionally venturing to the nearest town.

“It just feels so chaotic. I thought it’d be very short but it’s dragging on,” he told The Associated Press via messaging app. “If it goes on like this, we’ll run out of money.”

The U.N. refugee agency reported that approximately 100,000 people fled Tehran, a city of around 9.7 million, in just the first two days of the conflict. Officials believe the actual displacement figures are significantly higher, though comprehensive data for subsequent days or other affected cities remains unavailable.

The exodus spans across Iran’s urban centers. A 39-year-old lawyer endured a day of explosions that shook her home in Ahvaz, 800 kilometers southeast of Tehran, before fleeing with her family to their strawberry farm in a small town several hours away.

“The town doesn’t have military bases, so it feels relatively safe,” she said, speaking on condition of anonymity. Nevertheless, southern Iran has experienced some of the most intense bombardment, with a nearby town seeing an explosion when a strike hit a Revolutionary Guard ammunition site.

The lawyer worries about a gym frequented by Guard members located a few hundred meters from their farm. Airstrikes have targeted numerous sports facilities throughout Iran, apparently because the Revolutionary Guard often uses them as gathering places.

Daily life for these internally displaced families has been dramatically altered. No one is going to work, and children are unable to attend school. To pass time and distract themselves, the lawyer’s family walks their dogs, plays board games, and picks strawberries from their farm.

“From morning to night, we talk about what is happening, our worries, how everything gets more expensive every day, about how far our money will stretch,” she explained. “If this situation continues, we will have problems meeting basic needs.”

The U.S.-Israeli military campaign has delivered severe blows to Iran’s leadership, killing Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and top military figures. Operations have particularly targeted the paramilitary Revolutionary Guard and the all-volunteer Basij force, which are tasked with protecting the Islamic Republic and have been responsible for suppressing domestic protests.

Despite these losses, the leadership has maintained control. Khamenei’s son, Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei, was named the new supreme leader this week. Both the Guard and Basij have demonstrated that their local networks remain largely intact.

The lawyer noted increased militarization in her temporary home. “On the rare times I left the farm to go into town, I saw that members of the Basij were now more heavily armed in the streets,” she said. “They are waiting for the slightest movement” showing dissent.

Though she once campaigned against the mandatory hijab and was briefly detained for her activism, she now wears one when leaving home out of fear of provoking authorities. The town has traditionally supported the government, with many residents holding state positions or joining the Guard.

However, even in this pro-government region, signs of growing discontent are emerging. The lawyer observed large crowds during January’s anti-government protests, and notes that observance of the official mourning period for Khamenei has been notably muted, with few people wearing the black clothing urged by authorities.

The psychological toll on families, particularly children, has been severe. One man described how explosions made his 6½-year-old son tremble in fear before they fled Tehran. “You place him between you and your wife in bed, hoping he might feel safer,” he said, “but he still screamed in his sleep.”

As they drove through the capital, they witnessed the physical devastation—cars on roadsides with windows shattered from blasts, columns of smoke rising from different parts of the city. On highways leading out of Tehran, heavy with escaping traffic, explosions were strong enough to shake vehicles.

Many families have sought refuge in ancestral villages or family homes in remote areas. One father now spends his days in a house surrounded by rice paddies near the Caspian Sea, taking his young son for daily walks to burn off energy in an environment with few diversions for children.

Despite the hardship, many have found unexpected kindness from locals in their temporary homes. One displaced Tehran resident described going to a village bakery and being moved to the front of the line once the baker realized he wasn’t local. The baker then tried to refuse payment.

“The others in line were very friendly, asking whether I had a place to stay and whether I needed anything,” he recounted.

Not everyone has the option to leave. A 53-year-old man in Tehran explained that he cannot relocate his elderly parents and so must remain despite the danger and psychological strain. “At night, I go down to the parking garage, sit inside my car and scream out loud,” he said. “I pray for calm and for quieter days.”