Tears Of Joy And Sorrow: Mixed Emotions In Tehran As Toll Of War Mounts

With Iran coming under daily attack from US and Israeli air strikes, the toll of the expanding war is adding up both physically and mentally for the country's 92 million people.

Tehran came under intense bombardment in the early hours of March 6, with witnesses reporting multiple explosions, particularly around major government buildings, as the United States and Israel look to weaken the Islamic republic, which has already seen Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei and senior military leaders killed.

“The destruction has been very extensive. We’re experiencing very conflicting emotions," one woman who lives in the capital told RFE/RL's Radio Farda.

"One of them is happiness about the dictator being gone, and, for example, the commanders of the Revolutionary Guards and people like that -- honestly, you can’t say their deaths aren’t sweet; they really are. But, on the other hand, parts of the city that we had memories with for years are being destroyed,” she added.

Tehran Hit By Most Intense Strikes Of War

Since the conflict began on February 28, US President Donald Trump has called on members of Iran’s military, police, and the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) to lay down their arms.

He has also urged security forces to side with the Iranian public and help bring down the government that has ruled the country since the 1979 Islamic Revolution and faced mass protests less than two months ago that ended with a brutal crackdown that left thousands of Iranians dead.

SEE ALSO: US, Israel Vow No Letup And 'A Lot Of Hurt' As Campaign Against Iran Intensifies

While the attacks are aimed in part at weakening Iran's clerical rulers, some Iranians say the rising death toll is a concern.

Over 1,100 people, most of them civilians, have been killed since the massive aerial campaign began, according to US-based human rights group HRANA. The Iranian Red Crescent puts the number of dead even higher at more than 1,200. RFE/RL has not been able to verify the figures.

The death toll in Iran includes scores of children who were killed in an air strike on a girls' elementary school in the southern city of Minab, which Tehran said killed as many as 165 schoolgirls and teachers. United Nations experts have expressed "deep concern" about the attack, which is still under investigation.

“Of course, I still feel fear, and the sense that everything is falling apart. But I’m not hopeless. I feel like there’s still a small opening. A window has opened that didn’t exist for me before,” said the woman from Tehran, who asked not to be named.

US and Israeli military officials maintain that their operations are targeting Iranian command-and-control centers, missile sites, and state facilities. But humanitarian groups say over 100 civilian sites have been hit, including hospitals and sports facilities.

'Devastation': Tehran Resident Describes Life Under Ongoing Missile Strikes

Tehran has fired back, launching retaliatory barrages of missiles and drones at targets across the Middle East. Iran says it is targeting US and Israeli military facilities, but residential buildings and other civilian infrastructure from Azerbaijan to Saudi Arabia have been hit as well.

Those attacks have killed at least 11 people in Israel and three in the United Arab Emirates. In addition. six US service members have died in the conflict to date.

In Tehran, a city of some 10 million people that has borne the brunt of the devastating US and Israeli air strikes, residents have been gripped by fear.

"I feel we're losing our agency as human beings," another Tehran resident told RFE/RL’s Radio Farda on condition of anonymity.

"The sound of explosions causes a lot of anxiety, but these days even the sound of silence -- when you don't hear fighter jets or explosions -- is frightening. Because you keep waiting for a terrifying moment to see if you and others will survive."

SEE ALSO: Dana Stroul: US, Israel Achieving Military Gains In Iran, But Political End Remains Unclear

Beyond the human toll, the conflict is disrupting daily life and commerce. Iran's government has issued a decree banning all food and agricultural exports as a wartime measure to ensure adequate domestic supplies.

The strikes on civilian and residential areas have shattered homes and businesses, prompting evacuations in parts of Tehran and leading many residents to shelter in basements and makeshift bunkers.

Cultural heritage sites and markets have also suffered damage, deepening a sense of national crisis. The World Health Organization has identified multiple attacks on health-care facilities, raising alarm over potential violations of international humanitarian law.