"Bombing the infrastructure people rely on will not make Iranians [or Palestinians] embrace those carrying out the attacks." .... ‘It’s truly hell here’: airstrikes, repression and water shortages become ‘new normal’ for Iranians

Iranians describe how daily life is becoming ever harder as conflict continues and human rights crisis worsens 

Three boys play in the shallow waters of the strait of Hormuz as a plume of smoke rises from an explosion in the background, off Bandar Abbas, Iran Photograph: Razieh Poudat/AP

As US airstrikes hit port and inland cities in Iran, and Tehran strikes at the US’s Middle East allies, the escalating conflict has left many Iranians fearing that, amid war and a worsening human rights crisis, they remain trapped in a cycle of violence and repression with no way out.

Bandar Abbas, on the strait of Hormuz and the headquarters of the Iranian navy, has been hit by strikes every night since the latest escalation began nearly two weeks ago. Soroush*, a writer based in the city who secretly publishes a newsletter documenting human rights violations in Iran, described a “new normal” for its residents.

“We need to accept this could just be our new reality now and it’s worked because we are less afraid as each day goes on,” the 37-year-old said. “We are less afraid of the future because we are now forced to accept this is the new normal. There’s no one coming to save us from the bombs or the regime’s bullets. Our brains have tricked us into making peace with this new reality.”

For those living near the port, loud explosions followed by prolonged power cuts have become the norm over the past week.

Mehnaz*, 39, depends on the internet for her work and says she was already struggling with the government-imposed internet shutdown, which has severely affected her earnings.

“We always had power cuts, but the hours have now extended and I fear I can’t rely on my online work any more. The war is far from the end and daily life is becoming harder under the bombs, power cuts and internet shutdowns. It’s truly hell here,” she said.

Another port city reportedly struck by the US this week was Jask. State media claimed US strikes hit 100 civilian vessels and that an attack on the Bonji desalination plant left 20 villages without drinking water... READ MORE  https://www.theguardian.com/world/2026/jul/22/its-truly-hell-here-airstrikes-repression-and-water-shortages-become-new-normal-for-iranians

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United Nations experts strongly condemn the large-scale #US military action against #Venezuela & forcible abduction of President Nicolas Maduro & his wife, warning that such actions set a dangerous precedent & risk destabilising the entire region & the world.

UN Special Procedures

@UN_SPExperts

 

UN experts strongly condemn the large-scale #US military action against #Venezuela & forcible abduction of President Nicolas Maduro & his wife, warning that such actions set a dangerous precedent & risk destabilising the entire region & the world.

https://x.com/UN_SPExperts/status/2008923414241915342 

 

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 https://www.ohchr.org/en/press-releases/2026/01/un-experts-condemn-us-aggression-against-venezuela

07 January 2026

Press releases Special Procedures

GENEVA – United Nations experts* today strongly condemned the large-scale military action carried out by the United States against the Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela, the bombardment of Caracas and other cities and the forcible abduction of President Nicolás Maduro and his wife.

“These actions represent a grave, manifest and deliberate violation of the most fundamental principles of international law, set a dangerous precedent, and risk destabilising the entire region and the world,” the experts said.

They stressed that the unprovoked use of armed force on Venezuelan sovereign territory is a clear breach of Article 2(4) of the UN Charter, which unequivocally prohibits the threat or use of force against the territorial integrity or political independence of any State. It may also constitute the international crime of aggression attributable to the individual political and military leaders involved.

These actions reportedly caused the loss of an unknown number of lives. They are further aggravated by the preceding array of unilateral coercive measures against Venezuela, including a naval blockade and the armed seizure of tankers as well as the extrajudicial killing of at least 115 civilians allegedly linked to drug trafficking. “All of these measures are contrary to international and humanitarian law, including the non-derogable right to life,” the experts said.

UN experts noted that, under customary international law, sitting heads of state are immune from the criminal jurisdiction of foreign courts – not from the jurisdiction of the International Criminal Court –, while in office. This is a principle affirmed by the International Court of Justice in its 2002 'Arrest Warrant' ruling, and it is applicable regardless of diplomatic recognition or political considerations.

“This unprecedented attack on Venezuela must not be viewed as an isolated incident, but rather as part of a broader and deeply troubling pattern of systematic disregard for peace, international law and multilateral institutions,” the experts said. “This return to gunboat diplomacy includes repeated acts of military aggression, including extrajudicial killings and coercive diplomacy, the imposition of sanctions against judges and prosecutors of the International Criminal Court and a UN Special Rapporteur for work carried out under a mandate entrusted by the UN Human Rights Council.”

“Taken together, these practices signal a deliberate challenge to the international legal order and to the very principle that power should be constrained by law,” they said. “If tolerated, such actions would normalise lawlessness in international relations and would fatally undermine the global order.”

The experts expressed grave concern about subsequent public statements by the President of the United States, in which he asserted that the US would “rule the country until such time as we can do a safe, proper and judicious transition” and that “we’re going to be taking out a tremendous amount of wealth out of the ground”.

They warned that such declarations amount to a flagrant disregard for the right of peoples to self-determination and their associated sovereignty over natural resources, cornerstones of international human rights law enshrined in Article 1 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, to which the United States has been a party since 1992.

“Venezuela’s vast natural resources, including the largest proven oil reserves in the world, must not be cynically exploited through thinly veiled pretexts to legitimise military aggression, foreign occupation, or regime-change strategies,”... READ MORE  https://www.ohchr.org/en/press-releases/2026/01/un-experts-condemn-us-aggression-against-venezuela

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