aasoo highlights - Winter 2026

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Subject: aasoo highlights - Winter 2026

a digital magazine of culture, society and thoughtful enquiry

aaSoo highlights - Winter 2026

War Begins

As war broke out and the government imposed a total internet shutdown and media blackout, we tried to gather Iranian voices from inside the country, describing their experiences of living under air raids and missiles. They speak of how daily life has collapsed, as air attacks, missiles, smoke, and panic replace everyday routines. Shops have closed, prices have risen, and uncertainty fills the air.

With no shelters, sirens, or reliable communication, residents face the war with little protection. Amid the destruction, groups of government supporters parade through the streets shouting religious slogans, deepening the sense of despair. Yet small acts of care persist — checking on friends, feeding stray animals, children playing, and holding on to the simple goal of staying alive.

Tehran at War: No Shelters, No Sirens. But the Cameras Still Work

Three Notes from Tehran Under Attack

Mass Protests in Iran

In January, mass protests erupted across Iran. The government responded with a brutal crackdown, killing thousands — possibly tens of thousands of people.

We published a series of unique eyewitness accounts from Tehran and several other cities, capturing the protests as they unfolded in the streets. Through messages from detainees, scenes from crowded demonstrations, hospital testimonies, and stories from small towns, these accounts revealed fear, courage, and violence spreading across the country during one of the most intense waves of unrest in years.

In one report, a nurse in the small city of Qarchak recounts two nights when the local hospital was overwhelmed by the wounded and the dead. As bodies filled the morgue and gunshot victims arrived in waves, medical staff struggled to cope with what he describes as a mass killing unfolding before their eyes.

Two personal notes from Tehran describe the grief, fear, and the quiet question many now share: will ordinary life ever return?

Our reports were widely read. One report alone was read by around 1.5 million people and shared nearly 5,000 times on social media. The same piece was later translated and published in German by Frankfurter Allgemeine and in English by IWPR.

Fragments from the Protests: Voices from Several Cities

One Hundred Dead in a Small Hospital: A Nurse’s Account from Qarchak

Gen Z
We also spoke with a group of Gen Z Iranians about how they see the world, the aspirations they hold for their generation, and their hopes for Iran’s future. They describe lives shaped by restrictions, hardship, and repression, and reflect on whether these experiences have deepened their understanding of life or simply stolen their youth.

aasoo in English

We launched English pages on aasoo to share selected pieces of our work in translation. These pages offer a glimpse of aasoo’s current output and reflect the range and spirit of our work since we began in 2015.

The translated reports have received an enthusiastic response. Two reports featuring eyewitness accounts of the war in Iran, shared on social media, have received more than 650,000 views.

aaSoo is an online magazine of culture society and ideas

Religious Minorities in the Constitutional Revolution

In a series of long essays, Esfandiar Davachi explores the role of Iran's religious minorities in the Constitutional Revolution. How did Zoroastrians, Jews, Armenians, and Babi/Bahá’ís experience and engage with this transformative moment? What did they contribute, and how did it affect them?

The Zoroastrian community gained representation in the national parliament, marking an important step in its political recognition and in its pursuit of greater freedom and equality within Iranian society.

Jewish participation was more limited than that of other minorities, yet the revolution opened new political and social opportunities for the community. Despite continued prejudice, their symbolic presence in the Second Parliament and their support for constitutionalism helped advance a broader idea of citizenship in Iran.

Armenians played a significant role in the revolution. From the early Qajar period, their knowledge of European languages enabled many to enter government service and rise to high positions, while the community also flourished in cultural, educational, and artistic life. These developments prepared Armenians to take an active role in the constitutional struggle, contributing through political and military organisation to the constitutionalists’ victory.

The Babi movement helped shape ideas of renewal and change in Iran in the decades preceding the Constitutional Revolution. Azali Babis, often concealing their identity, were deeply involved in radical revolutionary activity and shifting political alliances. In contrast, Bahá’ís, who believed in cultural and spiritual transformation as the basis for social change, avoided partisan politics and focused on social and civic reform, continuing to influence the broader currents of constitutional change in Iran.

Three essays in the series have already been published, and the essay on the Bahá’ís will appear soon.

Mozaffar ad-Din Shah Qajar signing the Persian Constitution in 1906

Transitional Justice

aasoo participated in a special consultation convened by Justidad to review and refine a draft roadmap for transitional justice in Iran. Justidad is an Iranian civil society group that works to deepen public understanding of transitional justice and its practical steps for Iran.

We contributed perspectives drawn from the experience of the Bahá’í community, highlighting lessons that may support future processes of justice, truth-seeking, and institutional reform in Iran. These ideas were incorporated into the comprehensive guide published in December.

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Subject: aasoo highlights - Winter 2026