Just weeks after thousands of Iranians were killed in a brutal crackdown on dissent, life in the capital appeared to be back in full swing here on Tuesday. But the air of normality masks an uneasy truth – that many here feel trapped between the Iranian government’s rhetoric and US President Donald Trump’s threats of military action.
Trump has warned that an “armada” is heading toward Iran. “We have a lot of ships going that direction, just in case. I’d rather not see anything happen, but we’re watching them very closely.”
The first of those ships – aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln and a group of guided missile destroyers – have arrived within striking distance.
Tehran has responded by unfurling a four-story poster in the capital’s Enghelab – or Revolution – Square threatening the destruction of an American aircraft carrier.
“If you sow the wind, you will reap the whirlwind,” it warns in English and Persian over an image of the deck of the aircraft carrier strewn with bodies and streaked in blood that trails into the water behind in a shape similar to the stripes of the American flag.
Harbor tug boats guide Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln as the ship pulls into Naval Base Guam on December 11, 2025.Valerie Lynn Maigue/US Navy/File
A few blocks away, another government poster shows the 2016 capture of a US Navy boat, its crew of US Marines kneeling in surrender, their hands clasped behind their heads.
CNN saw both posters this week, in a visit to Tehran granted by government permission that offered a limited window into life in the city that just a few days earlier was roiled by bloody confrontation.
On the streets, Iranians are unsure which side poses a greater threat. “I’m not sure what to say. I think they are all collaborating with one another against the interests of the Iranian people. Nothing good will happen for us,” Mahsan, a young Tehrani, told CNN.
Another Tehran resident, Mehdi Akbari, said: “I don’t think Trump dares to (attack). “He’s more bluffing.”
Trump has repeatedly said he is considering several options including striking Iran, but also that Tehran “wants to talk,” suggesting that the US may enter discussions with the Iranian government.
“We are open for business … as they say, so if they want to contact us and they know what the terms are, then we’re going to have the conversation,” a White House official said Monday.
The commander of Iran’s Revolutionary Guard has warned that his force is “more ready than ever, finger on the trigger” to respond.
Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei told journalists Monday that Tehran is “more than capable” of responding to any aggression from the US with a “regretful” response.
“The arrival of one or several warships does not impact Iran’s defensive determination,” he said. “Our armed forces are monitoring every development and are not wasting a single second to enhance their capabilities.”
Iran has warned that a US attack would lead to strikes on Washington’s allies in the region. US-allied Arab nations in the Persian Gulf have lobbied Trump against a strike, according to regional officials speaking to CNN this month.
The Iranian military said its missile capabilities and efficiency have increased significantly since the 12-day war with Israel in June. Iran launched multiple waves of missile and drone attacks at Israeli targets during that conflict.
For Iranians on the ground the back-and-forth between Trump and Tehran is dragging out a “difficult” and “miserable” period when many are grieving for the thousands killed in the brutal crackdown on protesters that began over economic hardship late last year.
Economic conditions have only deteriorated since, with its currency – the rial – dropping to an all-time low. It dropped to 1,500,000 rials to the US dollar on Tuesday, according to several Iranian currency tracking websites.
The true scale of the challenges facing Iranian is only now becoming clear as the internet blackout begins to end.
“You couldn’t help leaving home to do shopping and daily things but the situation was really bad,” one young man, Arsham, told CNN about life during the protests. “Now that the internet connection is restored we only now know that so many were killed.”
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