In Tehran, exhausted Iranians are caught between war and the shadow of war

In Tehran, exhausted Iranians are caught between war and the shadow of war Submitted by MEE correspondent on Mon, 06/01/2026 - 14:01 Fear that war will return and hope that it will really end are in equal supply, but very few in Iran trust Trump Iranian women walk past an anti-US mural on a street in Tehran, Iran on 1 June 2026 (Majid Asgaripour/WANA via Reuters) Off Afshin, a 38-year-old living in Tehran, speaks for many Iranians when he describes how he’s feeling, over three months after the US and Israel launched their war on Iran . “We’re exhausted,” he says. “It’s either been war since last summer, or the shadow of war. I hope they come to a deal so we can finally get out of this suspended state… I just want life to go back to normal.” Like many others here in Iran , Afshin is tentatively hopeful that negotiations between the US and his country might resolve the current situation, which he describes as “neither war nor peace”. Talks mediated by several regional countries, including Pakistan and Qatar , have continued, despite US strikes on southern Iran and Israel’s invasion of southern Lebanon . Last week, Iranians were reading that a deal would give both sides an additional 60 days of ceasefire, during which time a more comprehensive agreement covering multiple issues, including Iran’s uranium enrichment programme and sanctions relief, would be worked out. There is no guarantee that such a reality will be reached. The uncertainty continues, and with it, an emotional burden many are finding hard to bear. Hediyeh, a 27-year-old national from Tehran, is still beginning to think some agreement may have been reached behind closed doors.  'We're exhausted.&n...

Original source: Middle East Eye