FRESNO, Calif. (FOX26) — One Fresno woman said she is terrified for family members still living in Iran and can sometimes hear bombs in the background when she’s able to reach them.
Parvin Malek, who grew up in Iran, said she has not been able to speak with her family often because of costs and a lack of resources.
When she does get through, she said the situation sounds dire and that her family tries to describe the scene.
One Fresno woman said she is terrified for family members still living in Iran and can sometimes hear bombs in the background when she’s able to reach them (FOX26).
“The whole city is all red… you will see flame everywhere,” Malek said. “It is so scary.”
She described smoke and fire spreading across the city during airstrikes.
“The whole city is all smoke,” Malek said. “But when they hitting like the oil tank or those kind of thing the whole city it would be like fire.”
Malek said she first learned about the attack as she was lying down to go to bed.
“I couldn’t sleep and I wake up my husband and I said that they attack Iran,” Malek said. “It is so scary.”
Malek said she had two reactions.
Her first being that she was overjoyed that the Supreme Leader had been killed.
“I was happy that (Ali Hosseini) Khamenei died, they killed him,” Malek said.
Her second reaction was that she thought these attacks would hurt the Iranian people.
“This war it put the country back many many years,” Malek said. “You are just ruining all of the structure of the country.”
Malek said people in Iran had already been pushing back against the government.
“When you go to Iran when he comes all the picture people girls they didn’t have any hair cover and so we were able to do that,” Malek said. “It was people they were all together and they push government back.”
She said the United States and Israel should not be involved in Iran’s leadership or future.
“It is not Trump business,” Malek said. “Do they (in) Iran (say) who is going to be the next president in the United States? Did they invade America? No.”
Malek also said that is afraid of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu doing to Iran what he has done to Palestine.
For now, Malek said her family is trying to stay safe by limiting when they go outside.
She said they do not leave their apartment unless it is to get more food and supplies.
“This is bad and I am really fear of my family and I am very upset and very sad,” Malek said. “If we believe in human rights, it is completely against human right, and I think that American people (and) the whole world they have to stand up and they have to stop this war.”
Malek also said that because of strict laws in the United States, she is unable to send money to her family in Iran.
She said she was not surprised at the announcement of Iran’s new supreme leader and said she knew he would be in power eventually.