Iranian Jew in Israel Navigates War and Hopes for Change

Sheba Rasson reflects on her family's exile from Iran and the possibility of returning home amid the ongoing conflict.

Apr. 3, 2026 at 12:00am

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A vibrant, fractured painting depicting an Iranian Jewish family walking through the streets of Shiraz, their figures repeated in overlapping geometric shapes and waves of warm, earthy colors.The Iranian Jewish diaspora's hopes of returning to their homeland are revived amid the ongoing conflict between Iran and Israel.Los Angeles Today

Sheba Rasson, the child of an Iranian Jewish refugee, describes living in Tel Aviv during the recent war with Iran and the complex emotions she feels about the conflict. While the missile strikes and sleepless nights were unsettling, Rasson found herself drawn to the possibility of change in Iran and the hope of one day returning to her mother's homeland.

Why it matters

The story of Rasson and her mother highlights the lasting impact of the Iranian Revolution on the country's Jewish population, who were forced to flee and scatter across the globe. As tensions between Iran and Israel escalate, the conflict has revived hopes among the Iranian diaspora that change may be possible, even if the path forward remains uncertain.

The details

Rasson describes living in Tel Aviv as missiles streaked across the sky and sirens disrupted her sleep. Despite the disruption, she felt a "quiet, disorienting grief" at the thought of leaving Israel, as if she were "stepping away from a moment [she] had spent [her] entire life waiting for." Rasson's mother was born and raised in Shiraz, Iran, before fleeing the country after the 1979 revolution. Rasson found herself thinking constantly about her mother's life in Iran and imagining what it would be like for her American, Iranian, and soon-to-be-Israeli identities to all exist in the same physical reality.

  • Rasson lived in Tel Aviv for weeks as the war with Iran unfolded.
  • Rasson's mother fled Iran in 1986, seven years after the Iranian Revolution.

The players

Sheba Rasson

A technologist focused on environmental sustainability and a freelance writer exploring faith, identity, and belonging.

Rasson's mother

Born and raised in Shiraz, Iran, she was one of hundreds of thousands of Jews who lived and thrived in Iran before the revolution. She fled Iran alone in 1986 and was resettled in the United States as a refugee.

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What they’re saying

“For the first time in my life, I imagined what it might be like for all three to exist in the same physical reality — what if being American and Israeli did not mean being forever removed from my mother's homeland? I imagined myself walking beside my mother through the tree-lined streets of Shiraz and bustling bazaars.”

— Sheba Rasson

What’s next

As the war continues, the future of Iran's regime remains uncertain, raising the possibility of change that could allow the Iranian Jewish diaspora to return to their homeland.

The takeaway

Rasson's story highlights the lasting impact of the Iranian Revolution on the country's Jewish population, who were forced to flee and scatter across the globe. The current conflict has revived hopes among the Iranian diaspora that change may be possible, even if the path forward remains uncertain.