Iran: 11 facts about the country following US strikes on three of its nuclear sites
What do Iranians think of Americans?
(This story has been updated with additional information.)
The United States launched attacks on three nuclear sites in Iran on June 21, President Donald Trump announced on Truth Social, as the Israel-Iran war entered the second week.
The attack comes after an air war between Israel and Iran broke out on June 12, after Israel struck nuclear and military targets in Iran. The initial attack is something Israel has long made clear it might eventually do as part of its efforts to prevent Iran from building a nuclear bomb.
Israel and Iran were once allies. But in the wake of Iran's 1979 Islamic Revolution, Tehran's clerical leaders have repeatedly pledged to destroy Israel. They oppose it for its cooperation with the United States, to win favor with regional Arab nations and in solidarity with Israel's stance toward Palestinians. Following the Saturday night attack, the United States is now involved in Israel's war with Iran, which since its start has caused many Iranians to flee Tehran and killed at least 240 inside Iran. Israel has reported 24 deaths from Iranian attacks.
Here are 11 facts about a country rarely visited by Westerners.
What do Iranians think of Americans?
The average person on the street is fascinated with foreigners, and this fascination extends to Americans. In particular, Iranians want to know what visitors think of Iranian food, culture, people, customs and Tehran's insane traffic. Iranians are extremely friendly, warm and hospitable and enjoy nothing more than inviting guests into their homes for a meal. It frustrates them that Iran tends to be viewed chiefly through the lens of its government and religious leaders. "We are not terrorists," is something that, as a visitor, you hear again and again in Iran.
What is Tehran, Iran's capital, like?
In the summer, Tehran is hot (and can be over 100 degrees most days), dry and completely clogged with traffic. Cars, trucks, buses, scooters and motorcycles (with few riders wearing helmets) vie for space in a city of 12 million people. These vehicles use a mixture of surprisingly modern highways and narrower roads. Tehran has must-see tourist attractions, such as the walled Golestan Palace, museums, restaurants and coffee shops. North Tehran is wealthy, cosmopolitan and has many tall buildings and modern hotels. Some men fit Western, city-dwelling stereotypes in skinny jeans and hipster beards. Women wear hijabs. South Tehran is poorer, more religiously conservative and home to Tehran’s Grand Bazaar marketplace.
It's 9 a.m. in New York and 5:30 p.m. in Tehran?
Most of the world’s time zones differ in increments of an hour, but some places use offset time zones. In those areas – including Iran – time zones change by half an hour. Iran is 8.5 hours ahead of New York. India also uses an offset time zone, as do parts of Australia, Canada and Venezuela. Another fact of life in Iran that might confound the average American worker: The workweek in Iran runs Saturday to Wednesday, in keeping with Muslim traditions.
Has Western culture made it to Iran?
Iranians can download or stream U.S. and European movies, music and media by accessing virtual private networks, or VPNs. This includes using social media platforms and messaging sites such as Instagram, X and WhatsApp. However, Iran's government monitors these channels and uses its cyber capabilities to try to thwart connections to some sites. The government also limits internet access and blocks overseas satellite channels when it wants to, as it did during large-scale street protests in 2022 sparked by the killing of Mahsa Amini, a 22-year-old woman who died in custody after being arrested by Iran's "morality police."
What's the food like?
In short, it’s delicious. It is aromatic and rich, and blends traditional and modern influences from an incredibly large area from the Mediterranean Sea to subcontinental Asia. A typical lunch or dinner dish combines fluffy rice with grilled lamb, chicken or fish. For breakfast, it's not uncommon to get eggs, flatbreads, yogurt, fresh Persian cucumbers (small, sweet and seedless) and a creamy sesame-like paste. Some of the most-used ingredients in Iranian cuisine include cardamom, almonds, grapes, mint, oranges, pistachios, pomegranates, raisins, saffron, turmeric and walnuts. Because Iran is a strict Islamic country, alcohol is not officially for sale.
What's a common misperception about Iranians?
That they are Arabs and speak Arabic. Most Iranians are from the Persian ethnic group and speak Farsi or Persian, an Indo-Iranian language common in Iran, Afghanistan, Tajikistan and several other countries. Other groups in Iran, while representing the minority, include Arabs, Armenians, Baloch people (from near Pakistan, in Iran’s southeast), Christians, Kurds and Jews. In fact, Iran has one of the largest Jewish populations in the Middle East after Israel. In the United States, one of the most famous Iranians may be Hossein Khosrow Ali Vaziri, a former professional World Wrestling Federation Championship star and actor better known by his ring name, "The Iron Sheik."
Does Iran have nuclear weapons?
Officially, no. At least, not yet. Only the United States, Russia, China, France, the United Kingdom, India, Pakistan, North Korea and Israel are members of the nuclear club, according to the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute. Iran insists that it is only enriching uranium for a civilian energy program. Few Western diplomats believe that. Iran began enriching uranium in the 2010s and struck a deal with former President Barack Obama’s administration in 2015 that saw it agree to limit uranium enrichment in exchange for monetary, oil, and other sanctions being lifted.
The first Trump administration exited that accord. Since then, international watchdogs say Iran has continued to enrich uranium to near-weapons level. In a late May report, the International Atomic Energy Agency estimated Iran had enriched uranium up to 60% purity. That is very close to the 90% enrichment level required to build a nuclear weapon, according to the IAEA and other nuclear watchdogs.
How have economic sanctions affected Iran?
Washington and its international partners have long insisted that any economic sanctions targeting Iran as a result of its nuclear program are not aimed at civilians and that humanitarian supplies never make it onto the list. However, many Iranians find this line of reasoning hard to understand and accept because decades of international sanctions have often led to shortages of cancer drugs, certain foods and key consumer goods. They have also caused a lingering economic crisis that has severely affected salaries, prices and jobs. When, in his first term, President Donald Trump pulled out of a U.S. nuclear deal with Iran and several world powers, Iran’s currency lost half its value. The sanctions have also meant that spare parts, for cars or other large machinery or hospital equipment, can be difficult to obtain. Over the last few decades, Iran has had an abysmal commercial airline safety record because of the impact of sanctions on its civilian aircraft fleet. For foreign visitors, the sanctions mean that Western bank and credit cards can’t be used – only cash.
Are Iranians able to travel?
The Iranian passport ranks 95th of 103 countries, with 42 visa-free destinations around the world, according to Henley & Partners, a London-based organization that compiles the Henley Passport Index, a gauge of global mobility based on nationality. None of these destinations is in North America or Europe. In the United States, Iranians fall under Trump’s travel ban. Iran’s ranking on the index compares to 182 visa-free destinations for American passport holders – No. 10 on the index. In reality, it is very difficult for Iranians to go anywhere outside their country unless they are wealthy or can prove they own a major asset, such as a house, which serves as proof they intend to return. If an Iranian man has not done military service, he usually cannot get a passport. And many Western countries are wary of granting Iranians visas for fear they will seek asylum. Under state law, married Iranian women need spousal permission to travel overseas independently.
What's the status of women's rights?
Not great. Before the founding of the Islamic Republic of Iran in 1979, women in Iran enjoyed many of the basic freedoms common in Western countries, such as the ability to choose what to wear and how to wear it. That all went out the window with the ouster of Iran’s last absolute monarch, Mohammad Reza Shah Pahlavi. Today, the hijab is mandatory for women and enforced by "morality police," who can dispense small fines or jail terms.
Other restrictions include fealty to the concept that a husband is the head of the family, and his wife is legally bound to obey him. A woman's testimony as a witness is worth half that of a man’s in a legal dispute. Iranian activists stage regular protests against these rules.
Little data is available on child marriage in Iran, but UNICEF estimates that approximately 17% of Iranian girls are married before the age of 18. Iran has 14 female lawmakers (out of 285) in its Parliament. It is also not uncommon for women to play leading roles in Iran’s corporate world. Women in Iran can play sports, drive and vote.
Who are Iran's allies?
For decades, Iran has had strong ties to a series of militant groups it supports and finances across the Middle East, all of whom have been weakened in the wake of Hamas' Oct. 7 attacks on Israel. These groups include Hezbollah in Lebanon, Houthi rebels in Yemen and various militia organizations in Iraq. Until Syrian President Bashar Assad's ouster, Iran also coveted close relations with Syria – cooperation that was based, partly, on the fact that the Assad family belongs to a small Shia Islam minority group called the "Alawites." Most Iranians practice Shia Islam. Iran has sought closer ties to Russia in recent years, but the Russians are unpredictable and Moscow’s interest in the association is chiefly based on its geopolitical interests in the Middle East, now heavily skewed to its war in Ukraine.
Contributing: Kathryn Palmer, Paste BN.
Kim Hjelmgaard is a Paste BN international correspondent. He reported from Iran in 2018.