Iran is cut off due to internet blackouts. Those who left the country gave a glimpse of the truth on the ground
Omid Golabkesh dragged his suitcase down the long corridor that marks the exit from the Kapikoy border in eastern Turkey. He was nearing the end of a grueling journey that included a 12-hour drive to the checkpoint from his home in Tehran.
The border crossing is located in the mountainous area of the more than 500 km border between Turkey and Iran. It is one of three places where people can cross from Iran and the gate provides a window into the country, which is largely cut off from the outside world due to a complete internet blackout.
Like many who venture out into the bright sun and cold air, Golabkesh initially seemed wary of the reporters and cameras gathered there.
But unlike many, he gave his full name, agreed to be filmed and presented a mysterious test on camera in Farsi.
“Iran is done. Iran is done,” he said. “Iran did not care about its people and now the people do not support Iran. The situation is complicated … only God can help.”
For the past two days, CBC News has been talking to Iranians who have recently left, including those who were on the border, and those who moved to the Turkish city of Van, 100 kilometers away. Those who shared their thoughts often spoke of fear, determination and hope that through it all, there would be peace.
Since Saturday, Iran has been attacked by a wave of airstrikes from the US and Israel, targeting the country’s army, defense systems, navy and its top political leaders. On March 1, Iranian state media confirmed that Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei had been killed, creating uncertainty about the future of the regime as a whole.
An Iranian woman who fled Tehran during the January protests spoke of her hopes and uncertainties following the assassination of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
Entry window to Iran
Many Iranians interviewed by CBC News are afraid to speak publicly. Often, when they agreed to be interviewed, they often asked that their name or picture be withheld because they were afraid of reprisals. Iran’s brutal clerical regime routinely arrests and executes those who appear to voice dissent.
Hundreds cross the border every day, including those returning to the country from abroad, and have had to travel by car as airspace over Iran is closed.
Many of those traveling have dual citizenship or family or business opportunities abroad.
On Monday afternoon, a young Iranian man told CBC News that his father was going to Iran on business, but the whole family decided to go with him to Turkey because of what he called “the situation at home.”
“Things are difficult,” said the man, who said he only wanted to be identified by his first name, Sam.
They had left their home in Tabriz, Iran, in the middle of the night.
“[The city] It’s open, but most hours of the day, people stay at home, because they’re afraid, of course. “
The Iranian-American, who only wanted to be identified as Bridget, said she was scheduled to leave Tehran as the US strikes began. He was already on the plane when the pilot announced that the plane would be grounded and everyone needed to get off.
It took him two days to reach and cross the border. When he got there, he said he joined a small crowd of Iranians waiting to leave.
“People were actually asking me, you know, ‘The United States is not going to make it, is it?'” she said.
“And I thought they were kidding…. I mean, we have to see what the loss is here.”
Rising strikes and deaths
It is difficult to get an accurate and reliable picture of what is happening in the world in Iran because the Internet is very closed, the media is controlled by the state and few journalists are allowed to report. But the Iranian Red Crescent, a charity working in the country, said more than 550 people had been killed since the strikes began early Saturday.
On Monday, the US military said it had hit 1,250 targets, and US President Donald Trump warned during an interview with CNN that the “big wave” in its war against Iran had not yet begun.
Trump he has been threatening to hit Iran for several weeks.
After mass protests erupted in the country at the end of December, leading to brutal crackdowns and the deaths of thousands, Trump told Iranians to keep protesting, promising that “help is on the way.”
Missiles have already killed scores of high-ranking officials, including longtime Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. The 23-year-old Iranian told CBC News that’s when his hands started shaking.
He was caught in a wave of emotions, he said: fear for his family in Iran, and excitement that the war might mark the beginning of the end of Iran’s brutal regime.
An Iranian man from Tabriz says shops are closed and people are staying close to their homes because of the bombings.
The woman, who CBC News spoke to in Van, asked not to be identified. He fled Tehran in January during protests when he said authorities were shooting indiscriminately into crowds.
He said some of his friends disappeared for days and came back with bruises on their bodies and were arrested.
“I left Iran when I saw these things happening. Even if you are sitting at home, it was really scary,” he told CBC News during an interview in Van, Turkey.
“You could hear the sounds, you could see everything burning.”
‘We all want to be free’
The woman had previously bought a bus ticket to return to the country on Monday as she did not want to exceed her legal limit of 90 days in Turkey, but she said her mother called her and urged her not to continue traveling.
With the internet down, he couldn’t communicate with most of his friends. He could not reach his family by phone, and was only able to speak to them when his mother called him.
“The last time I talked to my friends… They were telling me it’s over. It’s over. We’re going to have a really big celebration,'” she said.
“But I really don’t know what will happen, because it will not end only with the death of Khamenei.
“Every empire must fall.”
In the months before Khamenei’s death, there were reports that he was working on a succession plan. During the week, Iran formed a council to assume leadership duties and govern the Islamic Republic until a new supreme leader is elected.
In a pre-recorded video speech announcing the start of the operation Washington has dubbed “Epic Fury,” Trump told the Iranian people that they will now have a chance to “take over” their government, adding that it may be their only chance in generations.
The 23-year-old said many people he knows expect Trump to do something. Now that the US is hitting the country, he believes it will only be a matter of time before people wake up again, like they did in January.
“They will come back. They are just waiting for a sign,” he said.
“We don’t really know about the future; we only want this regime to be removed. We all want to be free.”
