After U.S. strikes, Londoners with family in Iran worry what comes next

With the United States now involved in Israel's war with Iran, Iranians living in London say they remain worried about the safety of their loved ones overseas, and fear what may come next in the escalating conflict.

It comes as the Iranian government weighs how or whether to retaliate in response to surprise U.S. strikes on three nuclear sites in the country, which U.S. President Donald Trump claimed "completely and totally obliterated" Iran's key nuclear enrichment facilities.

An ongoing communication blackout is only adding to their concerns, unable for days to reach family and friends who find themselves cut off from the world, as well as reliable, updated information about the war.

"For the past 10 days we maybe twice were able to contact Iran, but right now, the line of communication is totally cut. We cannot get a hold of them, they cannot even call us," said Londoner Mo Akbari, who has siblings, cousins and extended family in the country.

"A couple of days ago — I guess the internet was connected for maybe a short period of time — some of our family members, my brother, called and said they're OK."

Efforts to reach them through encrypted apps like WhatsApp and Telegram have proven unsuccessful, he said. VPNs have also been unreliable, something most Iranian internet users utilize to bypass government censorship, according to a survey from Iran's Parliamentary Research Centre.

One concern is what Iran may do next.

The U.S. intervention comes amid Israel's nine-day war with Iran, which it's said is aimed at destroying the country's nuclear program, amid claims Iran could quickly assemble a nuclear weapon.

In a statement, the Iranian-Canadian Congress condemned the U.S. strikes "in the strongest terms," saying they "recklessly ran the risk of untold harm to Iran's population with nuclear fallout by bombing civilian nuclear infrastructure sites."

The UN nuclear watchdog, the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), and Iran said there were no immediate signs of radioactive contamination at the three locations following the strikes.

Iran has maintained its program is for peaceful purposes only, and U.S. intelligence agencies have assessed that it's not actively pursuing a bomb.

It's top diplomat, Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, warned in a post on X that the U.S. attacks "will have everlasting consequences," that the U.S. had "crossed a very big red line," and that Tehran "reserves all options" to retaliate.

Iran launched a barrage of missiles against Israel overnight and into Sunday.

Some experts who have spoken with CBC News worry the U.S. attacks could incentivize Iran to build a nuclear weapon faster, and end cooperation with IAEA and the Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty.

Ehsan Zareei, whose parents, siblings and other relatives are in Iran, said he wasn't surprised that the U.S. was involved, given its military capabilities in reaching the fortified, underground nuclear sites.

The sentiment among some Iranians, he said, was that any country coming to help Iranians liberate themselves from the regime was a positive thing, however, U.S. officials said Sunday that the operation was not open-ended and "was not and has not been about regime change."

In the end, he worries it's the Iranian people who will face the wrath of the regime in the aftermath through increased brutality and repression.

"The regime, they might not have the tools and everything to stand against Israel and the U.S. and any other coalition abroad, but they are well-equipped to stand against the people of Iran," he said.

"Scores of people" have been arrested in Iran since the war began on June 13, accused of collaborating with Israel, and the regime has made official statements ordering expedited trials and executions for them, Amnesty International said Friday.

Zareei says the best case scenario was that external pressure from other countries weakens the regime and emboldens the Iranian people.

"At some point, people are going to be uprising, coming to the streets," he said.

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney has called for de-escalation, saying the U.S. military action was "designed to alleviate" threats posed by Iran, but said the situation in the Middle East remains "highly volatile."

He reiterated Canada's position that Iran must never be allowed to develop a nuclear weapon.

Maral Akbari, Mo's daughter, was born in Canada and is among those in the Iranian diaspora who believe the U.S. action was necessary to stop a global threat in Iran's nuclear program.

"We're not 100 per cent not worried, but honestly, we're more relieved, because we kind of know what the regime mindset is ... like, for years, they've been very clear for shouting, 'Death to Israel' and 'Death to America,'" she said.

"For all of us, we're more relieved, but we're still on edge because we don't know what's going to happen next."