Residents of Tehran went about their daily activities on Saturday, despite an overnight Israeli attack near the Iranian capital.
“That was not a real attack,” said a 57-year-old saffron seller in a thriving northern Tehran neighborhood as he sipped his tea. Mr Moussavi spoke about his 28 months serving in the Iranian military during the 1980-88 Iran-Iraq war.
“We are not afraid of a big war,” he said, adding with his eyes shining: “Iran will respond to any situation.”
Israel carried out “direct strikes” on military targets including missile production sites, surface-to-air missile systems and air defense systems, according to the Israeli army.
But the morning appeared like any other in Tehran, with the usual traffic jams and delays despite Israel’s widely expected retaliatory attack.
The strikes are seen as a response to Iran’s October 1 attack on Israel, in which it launched nearly 200 missiles into the Jewish region.
On Saturday, schools in Tehran remained open and flights resumed as normal. Ironically, the Iranian currency, the rial, even gained value against the euro after weeks of decline.
A resident of a neighborhood east of Tehran spoke on the phone about the attack. “The windows are shaking,” he said as planes roared overhead and wild explosions followed in the distance.
The highly sensitive Parchin military base lies southeast of Tehran. “Maybe that’s where they attacked,” he said, adding that he felt “pressure” as he looked out the window.
Iranian media played down the attack, saying that Israeli warplanes did not enter Iranian airspace and that damage was minimal.
Observers said this could be an indication that Iran’s leadership wishes to see the current cycle of tit-for-tat exchanges come to an end.
“Personally, I believe that there will be propaganda aimed at the domestic market,” said another.
Israel has heeded American advice not to bomb Iran’s oil sector or nuclear facilities, said an analyst close to Iran’s elite Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).
And he noted that Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi had said earlier this month during a visit to Middle Eastern countries that Iran does not want to expand.
Any final decision will not be taken by the government but by Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei and the IRGC.
Iranian society is accustomed to problems and difficult economic conditions. Many residents of Tehran were seen exercising in the city’s parks despite the attacks.
Others heard about them only after that. “I didn’t see the attack at all last night,” said Kian, a 20-year-old architecture student. “I am not afraid of Israeli attacks, because I know that their goals are military and not aimed at people,” he added.
A passer-by was shocked when asked about the attack. He said that he, who is now in his fifties, was in the army himself. Asked for his opinion, he replied, “If the other side is strong, you should hold back.”
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