According to Swedish public broadcaster SVT, Keihan Darvishi, a Swedish-Iranian man originally from the Kurdish region of northern Iran, has been unable to contact family members following weekend bombing attacks in the area. Darvishi, who was born in northern Iran and lived there for his first six years, told SVT that all communication networks have been broken since the attacks began.
"We know nothing, we don't hear anything. It's terrible," Darvishi said in the interview. He reported that his grandmother, who lives in Sweden, is visiting Iran and cannot return home due to the situation.
We know nothing, we don't hear anything. It's terrible,
Darvishi follows news reports showing bombs falling in cities where his relatives live, but cannot determine if his family members are safe. The uncertainty has affected his daily life, causing poor sleep and difficulty concentrating at work and with his child.
Later on the same day as the interview, Darvishi received some news through his mother, who managed to contact a relative. He learned that all family members are reportedly safe, though the relative described buildings shaking from bombs and drone attacks. "It was still nice to hear that they're doing well, right now," Darvishi said.
It was still nice to hear that they're doing well, right now,
The report indicates that communication networks in Iran had been shut down for several weeks in January and February, briefly functioned before the weekend attacks, and are now completely silent again.