REPORT: We dont even know if we will be alive tomorrow: just a few hours before Dons ultimatum ends

Published on April 7, 2026 at 9:00 pm

Last updated on April 7, 2026 at 10:39 pm

Reading time: 4 minutes – video: 3 minutes

In the Iranian capital, some streets were partially deserted by residents on Tuesday evening, while those who remained shared their fear of new American strikes.

From the rooftop of their building, a couple of Iranian teachers have been anxiously watching the sky, preparing for an escalation of conflict. Like most residents still in the Iranian capital, they have secured their windows with duct tape and tried to anticipate massive strikes: “We have removed mirrors and anything that could break under the impact of strikes. We have stocked drinking water. We are also prepared for power outages and have packed emergency bags with our documents and medications in case we need to leave quickly.”

Tehran (Iran) for the past month has become a ghost town with empty streets and closed shops. Those who could have gone to seek shelter in the countryside. With Donald Trump’s strong threats, the capital retreats even further into itself. A mother who wishes to remain anonymous admits that she cannot get used to the fear, and her children, whom she protects from the camera, are terrified: “It’s impossible to get used to the sound of bombs. With each explosion, we wonder what will happen, where the next one will fall. It’s scary. My youngest daughter is very scared. She covers her ears, seeks refuge in my arms. I have to reassure her and be strong for her,” she explains.

In the country, many Iranians have welcomed the war. But her husband is increasingly concerned about the excesses of the American president: “Trump is so unpredictable. We do not know what he has in store for us, what he can decide, we don’t know. What is his plan? What will he do to us? We don’t even know if we will be alive tomorrow. Today, I am unable to tell you whether I think this war is a good thing or not.”

The father closely follows the state TV news. Like another resident we reached by phone today. He is already devastated by the destruction of civilian infrastructure, such as a hospital recently. Twenty medical sites have already been damaged, according to the WHO. And his concern is growing tonight: “We feel that America will destroy everything and Israel wants to level Iran like Gaza. There is no longer the trust in Trump that there was at the beginning. We never asked for this. Today, either we are killed by Trump, or we are stopped by the regime. That’s our choice.”

In a park in Tehran two days ago, Iranians sought a respite before the uncertainties of the ultimatum. Students, in the sun, without their mandatory veil, still wanted to see a silver lining in the unknown: “At least, the morality police leave us alone completely. When I pass the checkpoints, the police say nothing about my hair. Certainly because they no longer have a police station to take us to. They have been destroyed,” they testified. Irony, to avoid succumbing to the anguish of this conflict with no end in sight.