The Tehran Exodus: “Living in such conditions is really hard”

Sajad, 35, a teacher, is one of them. He recounts his escape to Rasht, a green city near the sea. The journey normally takes a good four hours, but he was on the road for more than a day. "Now that we've arrived, things aren't any better. The shops are overcrowded, there's a shortage of food," he says. Accommodation has also become significantly more expensive. Sajad fears a long war. "Living in such conditions is really hard."

Another family is heading towards Turkey with their son. "I borrowed 5,000 euros from a friend so we can travel to Istanbul to see our daughter – in the hope that the situation will calm down a bit," said a 60-year-old journalist. "At the moment, we're waiting until the streets are a bit less crowded and are considering the best border crossing to use to enter Turkey."

But not everyone succeeds in leaving the country. An official from Tehran actually wanted to head toward Azerbaijan – on advice from his brother in the US. He set off on Sunday with his 82-year-old mother. "But due to heavy traffic, a shortage of gasoline, and my mother's poor health, we had to turn back. Now we're waiting for better conditions to try again."