PROTESTERS JUST FINISHED SPEAKING OUT AGAINST THE CONFLICT. TOM. JERRY AND SUSAN, THE REALITY FOR A LOT OF THE PEOPLE WHO WERE HERE EARLIER TODAY IS THAT THEY HAVE TIES TO IRAN, PEOPLE WHO THEY ARE RELATED TO, PEOPLE WHO THEY MAY BE FRIENDS WITH AND PEOPLE WHO THEY ARE JUST CONCERNED ABOUT. AS A RESULT, THEY SAID THEY WANT TO SEE THIS CONFLICT END WITH AS LITTLE LIFE LOST AS POSSIBLE. STRONG EMOTIONS OVER THE LATEST CONFLICT IN THE MIDDLE EAST. THEY WERE GOING TO WORK. AND WE HEARD, YOU KNOW, WHAT HAPPENED. MICHAEL AZAR OF HARRISBURG HAS A NUMBER OF COUSINS WHO LIVE IN IRAN, AND SAYS IT WOULD HAVE BEEN THE START OF THE WEEK FOR MANY OF THEM WHEN THE BOMBS STARTED FALLING. HE’S BEEN UNEASILY WAITING FOR WORD ON THEIR CONDITIONS. I WANT PEOPLE TO KNOW THAT THIS IS NOT JUST BACKGROUND NOISE, THAT EACH OF THOSE LIVES LOST, INNOCENT LIVES LOST IS A PERSON WITH HOPES AND DREAMS. THAT’S AS TRUE FOR AN IRANIAN AT AN ELEMENTARY SCHOOL OR IN THE PAST WITH A PASSENGER AIRLINE, AS IT IS FOR AN AMERICAN AT A MILITARY BASE, AN ISRAELI IN A BOMB SHELTER. DOCTOR MEHDI NOURBAKHSH WITH HARRISBURG UNIVERSITY, IS A NATIVE OF IRAN AND HAS WRITTEN EXTENSIVELY ABOUT THE COUNTRY AND MIDDLE EAST. HE SAYS THERE WILL LIKELY BE MAJOR CHANGE IN THE REGION, BUT WORRIES ABOUT UPHEAVAL. WE DO NOT UNDERSTAND WHAT IS THE END GAME. HOW MANY WEEKS AND WHAT OVERALL WILL BE THE CONSEQUENCE. NOW, A LOT OF THE PEOPLE WHO WERE PROTESTING HERE AT THE CAPITOL EARLIER THIS EVENING SAID THEY DON’T BELIEVE THIS IS EVEN A LEGAL CONFLICT. AND WE’RE URGING MEMBERS OF CONGRESS LIKE SCOTT PERRY, THE CONGRESSMAN FROM THE SUSQUEHANNA VALLEY, TO TAKE WHATEVER ACTION THEY COULD TO TRY AND BRING THIS CONFLI
Pennsylvanians with Iranian ties, relatives react to US strikes in Iran
Updated: 8:15 PM EST Mar 2, 2026
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Harrisburg residents with connections to Iran are experiencing strong emotions as the latest conflict in the Middle East unfolds, leaving many worried about the fate of their loved ones and the future of the region.Anxiously waiting for newsMichael Mehrazar, a Harrisburg resident, shared his concerns about cousins living in Iran, noting that the bombs began falling at the start of the week when many were going to work. Mehrazar has been anxiously awaiting news about his relatives in Tehran, who unsuccessfully tried to immigrate to the U.S.”I want people to know that this is not just background noise, that each of those lives lost is a person with hopes and dreams. That’s true for an Iranian at an elementary school or, in the past with, a passenger airline, as it is for an American at a military base or an Israeli at a bomb shelter,” Mehrazar said.Major changes and upheaval in IranDr. Mehdi Noorbaksh, a native of Iran and a professor at Harrisburg University, has written extensively about the country and the Middle East and expressed concerns about the potential for major changes and upheaval in the region.”We do not understand, you know, what is the end game, how many weeks and what overall, you know, will be the consequence,” Noorbaksh said.
Harrisburg residents with connections to Iran are experiencing strong emotions as the latest conflict in the Middle East unfolds, leaving many worried about the fate of their loved ones and the future of the region.
Anxiously waiting for news
Michael Mehrazar, a Harrisburg resident, shared his concerns about cousins living in Iran, noting that the bombs began falling at the start of the week when many were going to work.
Mehrazar has been anxiously awaiting news about his relatives in Tehran, who unsuccessfully tried to immigrate to the U.S.
“I want people to know that this is not just background noise, that each of those lives lost is a person with hopes and dreams. That’s true for an Iranian at an elementary school or, in the past with, a passenger airline, as it is for an American at a military base or an Israeli at a bomb shelter,” Mehrazar said.
Major changes and upheaval in Iran
Dr. Mehdi Noorbaksh, a native of Iran and a professor at Harrisburg University, has written extensively about the country and the Middle East and expressed concerns about the potential for major changes and upheaval in the region.
“We do not understand, you know, what is the end game, how many weeks and what overall, you know, will be the consequence,” Noorbaksh said.
