Iran Conflict Worries Student Body
Major general’s assassination widens preexisting rift between two countries
By Maxwell Moiseff
Major general’s assassination widens preexisting rift between two countries
By Maxwell Moiseff
On Jan. 3, a United States MQ-9 Reaper drone struck the Baghdad International Airport, killing Iranian major general Qasem Soleimani. In the following days, Iran retaliated with several missile strikes targeting U.S. bases. In addition, an Ukrainian Boeing 737-800 was shot down in what is being called an accident, taking the lives of 176 passengers and crew, including 82 Iranian citizens.
With conflict brewing in the Middle East, people around the world grew worried that the fighting could escalate into a third world war.
Many Pioneer students with family living in Iran are nervous about the potential fallout of the combat both at home and overseas. One such student, Sara Sangari, 12, said that she was concerned about the potential consequences for her Iranian relatives.
“It’s not easy when we’re living here comfortably and they’re (in Iran) with a possible war over their heads,” said Sangari. “Wars don’t happen on U.S. territory, so I feel fortunate to be here, but scared for those living in Iran. If there is a war between the U.S. and Iran, everything would be in shambles.”
Angelique Harutunyan, 10, has found it increasingly difficult to contact her Iranian relatives as the situation escalates. Although Harutunyan herself is not Iranian, her stepfather is.
“They can’t go on their phones because they shut off power in certain areas,” said Harutunyan. “All we know is that they’re trying to figure out a way to stay hidden, maybe go underground, in case something does go bad, but from what we’ve heard from the news, I guess it’s almost done.”
According to Sanaaz Asgarzadeh-Aval, 10, this distrust runs deeply within the Iranian-American community, which causes a great deal of internal conflict for those wishing to support their heritage in this stand-off.
“A lot of people aren’t very happy, they think that both sides are wrong, but they’re really not happy with Trump, but also they don’t like the leader of Iran anyways,” said Asgarzadeh-Aval. “They’re worried that both of them are going to do something stupid and kill a lot of people.”
Rodney Samkhaniani, 12, who has many relatives in Iran, described a state of general discontent in Iran, saying that the recent conflict was the result of long-standing tensions, rather than something new.
“The youth despises the Islamic regime, which is a borderline terrorist group,” said Samkhaniani. “This whole USA versus Iran thing has been brewing since the ‘50s and it’s barely starting to explode now, with the recent bombings from America and the retaliation from Iran.”
However, Samkhaniani also noted that the outbreak of a war could lead to prejudice and distrust in America.
“The people running both countries are incredibly ignorant,” said Samkhaniani. “I could see myself being harassed by ignorant people for being Iranian in America, which happened to my mother and father post-9/11.”
According to Samkhaniani, there is a palpable threat of war in Iran, including fear of conflict with Iraq.
“The Iranian people are constantly living under the fear of a possible war breaking out,” said Samkhaniani. “The last war they fought was the Iran-Iraq war, which the USA had a huge hand over on the Iraqi side.”
One student with close familial ties to Iran, Mohammad Ali Tayaranibeegham, 10, said that there has been some worries after the recent attacks.
“People are panicking a little bit, but prices are starting to go up a little bit too, like gas prices,” said Tayaranibeegham. “Everybody’s just trying to get out of there, but nobody can, really. It’s just the visa people selecting random people.”
According to Tayaranibeegham, the citizens of Iran do not support the war efforts.
“Almost all people in Iran are Islamic and the main message is peace,” said Tayaranibeegham. “Nobody wants to go to war.”
With conflict brewing in the Middle East, people around the world grew worried that the fighting could escalate into a third world war.
Many Pioneer students with family living in Iran are nervous about the potential fallout of the combat both at home and overseas. One such student, Sara Sangari, 12, said that she was concerned about the potential consequences for her Iranian relatives.
“It’s not easy when we’re living here comfortably and they’re (in Iran) with a possible war over their heads,” said Sangari. “Wars don’t happen on U.S. territory, so I feel fortunate to be here, but scared for those living in Iran. If there is a war between the U.S. and Iran, everything would be in shambles.”
Angelique Harutunyan, 10, has found it increasingly difficult to contact her Iranian relatives as the situation escalates. Although Harutunyan herself is not Iranian, her stepfather is.
“They can’t go on their phones because they shut off power in certain areas,” said Harutunyan. “All we know is that they’re trying to figure out a way to stay hidden, maybe go underground, in case something does go bad, but from what we’ve heard from the news, I guess it’s almost done.”
According to Sanaaz Asgarzadeh-Aval, 10, this distrust runs deeply within the Iranian-American community, which causes a great deal of internal conflict for those wishing to support their heritage in this stand-off.
“A lot of people aren’t very happy, they think that both sides are wrong, but they’re really not happy with Trump, but also they don’t like the leader of Iran anyways,” said Asgarzadeh-Aval. “They’re worried that both of them are going to do something stupid and kill a lot of people.”
Rodney Samkhaniani, 12, who has many relatives in Iran, described a state of general discontent in Iran, saying that the recent conflict was the result of long-standing tensions, rather than something new.
“The youth despises the Islamic regime, which is a borderline terrorist group,” said Samkhaniani. “This whole USA versus Iran thing has been brewing since the ‘50s and it’s barely starting to explode now, with the recent bombings from America and the retaliation from Iran.”
However, Samkhaniani also noted that the outbreak of a war could lead to prejudice and distrust in America.
“The people running both countries are incredibly ignorant,” said Samkhaniani. “I could see myself being harassed by ignorant people for being Iranian in America, which happened to my mother and father post-9/11.”
According to Samkhaniani, there is a palpable threat of war in Iran, including fear of conflict with Iraq.
“The Iranian people are constantly living under the fear of a possible war breaking out,” said Samkhaniani. “The last war they fought was the Iran-Iraq war, which the USA had a huge hand over on the Iraqi side.”
One student with close familial ties to Iran, Mohammad Ali Tayaranibeegham, 10, said that there has been some worries after the recent attacks.
“People are panicking a little bit, but prices are starting to go up a little bit too, like gas prices,” said Tayaranibeegham. “Everybody’s just trying to get out of there, but nobody can, really. It’s just the visa people selecting random people.”
According to Tayaranibeegham, the citizens of Iran do not support the war efforts.
“Almost all people in Iran are Islamic and the main message is peace,” said Tayaranibeegham. “Nobody wants to go to war.”