AI Brief
- Iranian women participated in firearms training at Tehran's Imam Hussein Square amid ongoing tensions with the United States and Israel.
- A new civilian training centre was opened at Haft-e Tir Square to prepare for potential US or Israeli ground attacks.
- Despite a truce on April 8, sporadic fighting continued, and Iran signalled readiness for a stronger response if large-scale attacks resume.
Iranian women trained with firearms at a military training centre in Tehran's Imam Hussein Square on Sunday (October 4), as tensions with the United States and Israel persisted.
Iran opened a new centre at Haft-e Tir Square on Saturday (October 3) to prepare civilians to confront US and Israeli forces if they launched a ground attack. It followed the earlier camp at Imam Hussein Square.
Footage from the training centre showed women listening to military officials and instructors, then practising with firearms, including handguns.
A 45-year-old attendee, Raheleh Ghadiri, said knowing how to defend her family and neighbourhood in wartime would ease her fears.
US-Israeli attacks on February 28 set off seven months of conflict. A truce on April 8 ended 40 days of war, but sporadic fighting continued. Sources said Iran was readying a broader and more forceful response if the United States resumed large-scale attacks.
