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IN BRIEF
- Iran’s supreme leader was killed in his office on Saturday, as coordinated US-Israeli strikes targeted his compound.
- People have danced in the streets in celebration while others have mourned his death.
The skies over Iran resonate with a new and tumultuous soundscape—fighter jets slicing through the air, sudden bursts from airstrikes, and the reverberating clamor of explosions across Tehran and beyond.
Amid this chaos, Rana finds herself at the center of it all in her Tehran residence. Speaking to SBS News, she reveals that fear does not grip her; instead, she is buoyed by “hope.”
For her protection, SBS News has opted to use a pseudonym. Many Iranians remain wary of potential backlash from the government for engaging with international media.
Beginning last Saturday, her city has been under assault from a coordinated military campaign by the US and Israel. This offensive comes on the heels of discussions in Geneva, Switzerland, aimed at curtailing Iran’s nuclear ambitions. In retaliation, Iran has launched missile attacks targeting Israel and American bases throughout the area, including locations in Bahrain, Qatar, and Kuwait.
Rana envisions this conflict as a catalyst for political upheaval, hoping it might dismantle a regime that has dominated Iran since 1979.
“Contrary to popular belief, we do not feel any unpleasant feelings. We are actually full of hope for change in the future,” she told SBS News.
“But certainly every change has a price … We are not afraid. We stand up to those against us, as we have stood up for 47 years. My fear is about the survival of the Islamic Republic, not the possibility of chaos and political instability.”
While landline and internet services are down across most of Iran, SBS News has received messages from some Iranians who have managed to find connectivity and want to share their eyewitness accounts.
Maryam (not her real name) told SBS News on the condition of anonymity: “I have extremely complex feelings.
“[I am] very worried about the future and deeply happy about the weakening of the Islamic Republic of Iran, at the same time, hopeful for positive changes.”
‘Darkness lifting from our bodies’
Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, was killed on Saturday, as coordinated US-Israeli strikes targeted his compound in the capital, Tehran.
The news reverberated through the homes of Iranians — and it didn’t take long before many started cheering and chanting from their windows.
Videos posted to social media show the streets in Tehran and other cities erupting in exuberance. Large crowds gathered to dance, fireworks lit up the sky and celebratory music was played — marking the end of Khamenei’s 36-year reign.
Rana was one of them.
She told SBS News that after thousands of protesters were killed on the streets in January amid nationwide demonstrations, “the news of Ali Khamenei’s death … felt like a weight of darkness lifting from our bodies”.
“Now we are dancing and celebrating — filled with a deep sense of joy we had long wished for.
“Although we had hoped to see him stand trial in court, his death has given people new energy and a renewed sense of life.”
The protests, which became one of the deadliest crackdowns in Iran’s history, initially stemmed from economic grievances but evolved into an anti-regime movement.
According to the US-based human rights group, Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA), more than 7,000 protesters were killed, and more than 50,000 people were arrested. HRANA is also investigating a further 11,700 deaths.
Iranian authorities have disputed these figures and say the number of casualties is just over 3,000, including security forces.
When asked who is to blame for the deadly crackdown on various protest movements in the Islamic Republic’s history, some blame Khamenei.
Some of the prominent protests that resulted in mass fatalities and imprisonments include the 2009 and 2010 Green Movement, the country’s ‘Bloody November’ in 2019, and the ‘Woman, Life, Freedom’ movement, which began in 2022.
Yalda, another woman in Iran whose name SBS News has changed, said she is “happy” about the death of the former supreme leader, but she would have preferred to see him prosecuted.
“I would have preferred him to be arrested alive and for international forums to set up a court for him,” she told SBS News.
‘Profound concern’
But for many Iranians, this sense of relief has been short-lived, with questions about the country’s future coming to the fore.
“At the same time, there is a profound concern within us that the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps may have sacrificed him [Ayatollah Ali Khamenei] to preserve its own survival,” Rana said.
Maryam also said, “unstable conditions, the uncertainty of the future, are very worrying” for her.
In response to Khamenei’s death, the Iranian government has announced “40 days of public mourning and seven days of public holidays”.
Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian said the killing of the supreme leader is “a declaration of war against Muslims” by Israel and the United States.
Pro-regime mourners dressed in black also turned out in Iran’s capital to mark Khamenei’s death. Congregating in Enghelab (Revolution) Square, some held photos of Khamanei, some wept, others reportedly chanted “death to America” and “death to Israel”.
A man at the rally told the Reuters news agency the news of Khamenei’s death had filled him with hatred and “we must avenge the blood of the leader”.
According to Iranian state television, gatherings also took place in other cities.
‘Only chance for generations’
According to an Iranian official, under the country’s constitution, Iran’s president, the head of the judiciary, and one of Iran’s Guardian Council jurists will take responsibility for a transitional period of government after Khamenei’s death.
Iran has a formal constitutional process for selecting its supreme leader, but it is unclear how much of this process can be carried out, with some hoping for regime change, both inside and outside Iran.
US President Donald Trump has stated in a video posted to Truth Social that this military operation presents an opportunity for the Iranian people to overthrow the clerical establishment.
“The hour of your freedom is at hand,” he said.
“When we are finished, take over your government. It will be yours to take … This will probably be your only chance for generations.”
The US has long demanded an end to Iran’s nuclear program, and Trump has stated regime change would be “the best thing”.
Exiled Crown Prince Reza Pahlavi, the eldest son of the last shah of Iran, who describes himself as a “transitional figure” leading Iran in a revolution, has also said that whoever replaces Khamenei by the regime “will have neither legitimacy nor longevity”.
Some Iranians like Rana are hoping for Pahlavi to return.
“At this point, there is no choice other than Pahlavi,” she said
“I think his presence is good for getting through these historical events, but in the future, I hope that competent people will come to power through free elections.”
For some other Iranians, the next step is multifaceted.
“I cannot say who the [future leader] will be now,” Maryam said.
“I definitely do not want it to be someone from within the country’s structure, and it is very important that a secular and lawful government is formed.
“I think the person is less important than the framework and structure.”
— With additional reporting by the Reuters and Agence France-Presse news agencies.
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