Iranian model in Korea explains why some Iranians seem happy about strikes on Tehran

Iranian model Hoda Niku holds a sign reading “For Khamenei, killing people was like a game” during a rally supporting anti-government protests in Iran at Seoul Station Plaza in Seoul last month. Captured from her social media

For Hoda Niku, an Iranian living in Korea, the same question keeps coming up.

Why do some Iranians appear happy when they hear news of war and bombing of their own country?

The Iranian model said the answer lies in decades of repression and suffering under the current regime.

“I don’t believe anyone is truly happy about bombings,” Niku wrote on social media Monday. “But over the past 47 years, the Iranian people have endured immense suffering and repeatedly tried to coexist with this government.”

She went on to criticize the regime directly, saying Iran’s vast natural resources and wealth have largely been used by the government for its own benefit. Public protests have erupted several times, she added, but have been violently suppressed.

“If a government capable of killing more than 40,000 of its own unarmed citizens in just two days were to obtain nuclear weapons, would it really use them peacefully?” she asked, referring to recent protests and the government’s violent crackdowns.

Niku placed third in the 2018 Miss Iran competition before leaving the country and settling in Korea, where she now works as a model, YouTuber and television personality.

During anti-government protests in Iran in January, she posted videos urging Koreans to pay attention to the situation. More recently, she has been uploading videos explaining the conflict between Iran and the United States, translating developments into both Korean and English for her followers online.

This article from the Hankook Ilbo, the sister publication of The Korea Times, is translated by a generative AI system and edited by The Korea Times.