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Widespread power outages are crippling daily life across Iran, according to voice messages sent to Iran International by residents in cities including Tehran, Shiraz, Ahvaz and others.
Some of the accounts describe isolation in sweltering apartments, lack of essential services and increasing anger over government inaction.
In Ahvaz, where daytime temperatures top 45°C, one man said midday cuts had left families without air conditioning.
A resident of Pardis near Tehran reported being stranded in a high-rise: “On the 14th floor, we’re cut off from the world for two hours a day—no power, no water, no communication.”
In Shahreza in Isfahan province, a woman filmed a gas station rendered defunct by power cuts.
Iran faces a shortfall of nearly 20,000 megawatts, a crisis fueled by extreme heat, dwindling hydropower, and years of underinvestment.
Messages show burned-out appliances, food spoilage, and even fire damage. “This fire started because of power flickers,” said one man, gesturing to a scorched storefront. “This is one of the blessings of the Islamic Republic.”
Some residents complained about bathing children with bottled water and elderly citizens stuck in buildings without functioning elevators or water pumps.
“No bread, no water, no electricity, no internet, no clean air,” one voice said. “This already is hell.”
The outages have hit mobile networks and small businesses alike, with dead batteries at relay stations shutting down service and shopkeepers counting losses. “The fuse blew. Everything spoiled. I paid a heavy price,” said a Gelato shop owner.
Despite vast oil and gas reserves, Iran’s government has failed to upgrade infrastructure or build renewables.
Authorities continue to cite illegal cryptocurrency mining as a strain. Energy Minister Abbas Aliabadi said such operations now consume over 1,000 megawatts—about 5% of the shortfall.
But the broader collapse in services continues. In high-rise buildings, electricity cuts disable water pumps, leaving residents without running water. “We haven’t showered in two days,” said a woman in one video. “We use bottled water for the toilet. At least open the public baths.”
Two Republican lawmakers have called for sanctions against Iraq as part of Washington's maximum pressure campaign on Iran.
"More than 4,400 American service members sacrificed their lives since the start of the Iraq War, yet today Iraq stands as nothing more than a puppet of Tehran," Reps. Joe Wilson (R-SC) and Greg Steube (R-FL) wrote in a letter to US Secretary of State Marco Rubio.
US president Donald Trump says he told Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu that attacking Iran would be "inappropriate" at this point as a deal is very close.
"That could change at any moment," Trump told reporters on Wednesday, stressing that he did not trust Tehran.
"We're having some very good talks with Iran. We'll find out whether that means anything, but we're having good talks," he said.
The sixth round of talks between the foes is yet to be scheduled, but the President sounded confident that an agreement may be reached within weeks.
He warned, however, that the capability to disrupt Iran's nuclear program is there and can be deployed in no time.
Iran may agree to pause enrichment for a year if the United States releases frozen funds and recognizes Tehran's right to enrich uranium, Reuters says citing Iranian officials.
The sources hinted at a "political understanding" between Tehran and Washington that could see the former halt refining uranium for a year, ship part of its highly enriched stock abroad or convert it into fuel plates for civilian nuclear purposes.
Reuters quoted one source as saying that this "has not been discussed yet" during the talks with the US negotiating team.
Israel on Thursday rejected a report in the New York Times that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has been threatening to disrupt talks on a nuclear deal between the United States and Iran by striking Iran's main nuclear enrichment facilities.
Netanyahu's office issued a statement in response to the article which said simply: "Fake news."
The New York Times has responded by saying it stood by the report, according to Reuters.
"The New York Times reporting on this matter is thorough and based on discussions with people directly familiar with the matter. We remain confident in what we published," Reuters reported citing a written statement from the paper
