‘Anyone Could Suddenly Disappear’: Desperate Pleas from Iranian Jews Amid Mass Arrests

The Jewish community in Iran is gripped by “existential fear” following a wave of arrests in the wake of recent Israeli and U.S. attacks on Iranian nuclear facilities, relatives of community members told Israeli news outlet B’chadrei Charedim Sunday.

Sources close to the community say that over a thousand individuals have been detained across Iran on suspicion of collaborating with Israel, with many Jews among them. The arrests are reportedly based on alleged contact with relatives in Israel, phone calls, or past visits.
Family members of those detained, residing outside Iran, have reached out to Behadrei Haredim, sending emotional messages pleading for tefilos throughout the Jewish world.

“We call on all Jews around the world to pray for our brothers and sisters in Iran,” one message posted online stated, as reported by B’chadrei. “In the midst of the arrests, the Jewish community there needs much mercy from G-d. Many of the country’s Jews were in custody last Shabbos, and it is unclear what their fate will be.”

According to a report from the Iranian opposition website HRANA, dozens of Jews were arrested last week, primarily in Tehran and Shiraz. At least 35 have been taken for questioning by security forces and transferred to intelligence units. They are being interrogated about their ties to Israel, including meetings or conversations with relatives in the country, and their use of the internet and external media.

“Anyone could suddenly disappear. From the street, from work. Sometimes just because of a certain last name or a previous visit to another country,” one source close to the Jewish community described to B’chadrei, highlighting the “tangible existential fear.”

“The detainees are being held in difficult conditions, completely cut off from their families, and are not allowed to make contact. We appeal to klal Yisrael — pray for them. Say Tehillim. Only by the grace of shamayim will they be able to return to their homes.”