When the president of the United States, Donald Trump, asked himself a few days ago when the Iranian people were going to rise up against the Islamic Republic in Tehran, many did not believe what they heard. "When are the Iranian people going to stand up and fight?" Trump asked himself in early September on his Truth Social network.
After the death of thousands of people in the January protests, the war and the broken promises of the American president, the response of residents of Tehran is that they do not go out to protest for fear of being killed, repression and executions, in addition to distrust of Trump, although many of them are against the Islamic Republic.
"It's easy to say from the outside that people have to go out and protest. But Trump doesn't live here and he doesn't know what it means to go out on the streets in Iran," says Negin, a 38-year-old English teacher.
The woman explained that there is still fear of "another brutal repression, the death of thousands of protesters and executions" as occurred during the January protests.
At the beginning of the year, what began as a protest against rising prices became a movement calling for the end of the Islamic Republic and only disappeared after what Amnesty International described as "massacre."
In two days of repression, on January 8 and 9, thousands of people died. Iranian authorities put the death toll at 3,117, but human rights organizations such as the US-based opposition HRANA raise that figure to more than 7,000.
In comparison, during the Islamic Revolution of 1979, 2,781 people died, according to data from the Martyrs of the Islamic Republic Foundation.
Since the end of the protests, at least 29 people have been executed for allegedly committing crimes during demonstrations for which Iran blamed the United States and Israel.
Maryam, a 35-year-old graphic designer, agrees with Negin, saying that "there is a fear that any protest will end in violence," something she thinks Trump should know.
"Trump himself had previously said that Iranians do not protest because if they take to the streets, they will be shot. It seems that he has forgotten his own words," he says.
They also remember in Tehran that on January 13, days after the massacre of thousands of people, Trump promised to help the protesters.
"HELP IS ON THE WAY. MIGA! (Make Iran Great AGAIN)," the American said in Truth Social. There were Iranians who believed Trump's message and expected help from the United States, but instead he launched a war together with Israel against Iran on February 28.
For 39 days in a row, the United States and Israel launched 13,000 attacks against the Persian country, especially against its capital, in which half of the nearly 4,000 dead were civilians and in which schools and hospitals were hit.
"It is one thing to support the Iranian people and another to attack Iran and civilian areas, such as schools or hospitals. When you see bombs and deaths, it is very difficult to think that this is help," says Negin, who says he does not trust Trump or other foreign leaders. "They only look out for the interests of their countries," he says.
Added to all this is that the war and Iran's ability to confront the United States and Israel has fueled nationalism among the population, regardless of whether they support or agree with the Islamic Republic.
During the war, young women, modernly dressed and unveiled, were seen at pro-government marches, simply in support of their country.
"The Islamic Republic has demonstrated its efficiency in really difficult times, facing two sophisticated armies without giving a single inch," says Zahra, a 63-year-old housewife.
This woman says that before the war she did not fully support the Islamic Republic and does not agree with many of its policies, such as the mandatory veil, but after the war she says that she supports the system "100%."
