After months of open military conflict between the United States, Israel and Iran, the announcement of a preliminary agreement to end hostilities has sparked a tangled spectrum of reactions across Iran, ranging from cautious relief and guarded hope to deep distrust, anger and outright opposition. For millions of ordinary Iranians who endured months of disrupted daily life, economic chaos and the constant threat of escalating full-scale war, the news brought a long-awaited moment of release, though many still struggle to believe the violence is truly over. Sepideh, a 32-year-old Tehran-based online handmade jewellery seller, summed up the common feeling of cautious joy in an interview with Middle East Eye. “Has it really ended? I can’t believe it,” she said. “Thank God. I still can’t believe it’s over. I just hope everything goes back to normal. We were exhausted. I’m so, so happy.” Sepideh’s small business was pushed to the brink of collapse by the months of conflict. Like thousands of other micro-entrepreneurs across Iran, she relied almost entirely on Instagram to reach customers and process sales. Widespread internet shutdowns implemented amid the conflict froze her operations entirely, and as anxiety about the war dominated public consciousness, consumer demand for non-essential goods like handcrafted jewellery evaporated entirely. Now, after weeks of back-channel diplomatic talks that produced the preliminary ceasefire and framework for broader negotiations, Sepideh is finally allowing herself to plan for the future again. She holds out hope that the tentative agreement will hold, opening the door to a broader pact that eases crippling economic sanctions and creates space for small businesses like hers to recover and grow. Across the country, reactions to the deal split sharply along political and generational lines. While many Iranians are simply grateful for an end to the cycle of missile strikes and military escalation that pushed the region to the edge of full-scale war, others doubt the agreement will survive long term, with some viewing it as a dangerous betrayal of national interests and others seeing it as the only viable alternative to catastrophic regional conflict. For 28-year-old Darya, from the northern Iranian city of Sari, the deal could unlock a life-changing opportunity that has been stuck in limbo for months. Darya has already been accepted to a university program in France, but visa processing ground to a halt amid the uncertainty of war. Now, she says, there is finally a clear path forward for her plans. “It feels like a miracle,” she told MEE. “I know almost nothing about politics, but for months all I did was follow the news.” The constant uncertainty took a severe emotional toll on Darya, who says she was particularly panicked by Israeli strikes on Lebanon just days before the deal was announced, fearing the attacks would derail the fragile diplomatic process entirely. “I was sure [Israeli Prime Minister] Netanyahu was trying to sabotage everything,” she said. “When I heard about the new Israeli attacks on Lebanon, I thought it was over. I thought we were back to square one. Iran would respond, then Israel would respond again, and eventually the United States would get involved.” Even as she welcomes the end of hostilities, Darya says she still plans to leave Iran to complete her studies, at least temporarily. “Yes, I want things to improve in Iran,” she said. “I want sanctions to be lifted. Most of our problems come from sanctions. If sanctions are removed, jobs, businesses and the economy will improve too.” She says she still wants the experience of living and studying in Europe, but holds out hope that when she completes her degree, Iran will be a far more stable and prosperous place. Not all Iranians share Darya’s guarded optimism. For 43-year-old Mohammad, the tentative deal does little to convince him that a lasting, comprehensive agreement is within reach. “Just look at how long it took them to reach this small understanding, which is really more of a ceasefire extension than anything else,” he said. “During that time, the United States attacked, Israel attacked and Iran attacked. All of that makes it difficult for me to be optimistic. People want to believe all their problems are over, but I don’t think Iran and the United States will be able to reach an agreement on difficult issues like the nuclear programme and sanctions relief.” The announcement also sparked deep frustration among opposition activists opposed to the Islamic Republic, many of whom had pinned hopes that sustained external military and political pressure would force fundamental political change inside Iran. Amir, a 19-year-old from Karaj, is one of those disappointed activists. “We were fooled,” he told MEE. “We were lied to. Reza Pahlavi said he was on his way to Tehran. Trump said help was coming soon. Netanyahu said he would change the situation in Iran. Was this the help Trump promised? To make a deal with the clerics?” Amir says the deal has left him feeling more hopeless than before. “I could not have imagined worse news,” he said. “Once the agreement is in place and the Islamic Republic no longer worries about war, it will turn its attention back to the people. More repression will follow.” His frustration reflects a broader disappointment among opposition circles, which had hoped the recent conflict would fundamentally weaken the Iranian political system, only to see Tehran and Washington return to the negotiating table. The harshest criticism of the deal, however, comes from hardline supporters of the Islamic Republic, who have organized public rallies and gatherings in recent weeks to denounce negotiations, with some branding Iranian negotiators as traitors to the nation. Emad, a 38-year-old Tehran resident, is one of those hardline opponents. “God curse Araghchi and Ghalibaf for throwing us into another trap like the nuclear deal,” he said. “Only 10 years have passed since the disgraceful agreement between Rouhani and Obama. How can people fall for this again? Especially when the other side is led by the man responsible for killing our leader.” Emad, who is still grieving the death of former Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, remains deeply pessimistic about the diplomatic process and argues another military confrontation is inevitable. He points to the timing of the ceasefire, which runs for two months, as proof the deal is a cynical political ploy by Trump. “Look at the timing. Why two months from now? Because Trump wanted peace of mind during the World Cup. After that, he will come back for us,” he said. “And under what conditions? We reopened the Strait of Hormuz, oil prices returned to normal, and the United States and Israel have had time to update their plans for another attack on Iran.” Emad argues the entire diplomatic process is a coordinated performance by Trump and Netanyahu, designed to mislead Iran. “Do you really believe Netanyahu drinks a glass of water without American approval?” he asked. “This whole good cop, bad cop act was designed to fool us into thinking Israel opposed the agreement.” He argues Israeli leaders actually benefit heavily from the preliminary deal, because they recognized another prolonged war would be impossible to sustain. “They knew they could not continue resisting Iran and the groups that make up the Axis of Resistance forever,” he said. For many other Iranians, it is simply too early to draw any firm conclusions about the deal, and public reactions on both sides have been overly emotional. Maryam, a 59-year-old political science graduate, argues the deal essentially returns Iran to the status quo that existed before the 40-day war started, raising difficult questions about the human cost of the conflict. “When you read the commitments made by both sides, you realise we have basically returned to where we were before the 40-day war,” she said. “But was it really necessary for so many innocent civilians to die? Did schools, universities and hospitals need to be destroyed just so the Strait of Hormuz could return to normal and the American military could end its siege of Iran?” Maryam also argues the conflict offers clear proof of the outsized influence of pro-Israel lobbying groups on US foreign policy, a point made decades ago in a book by scholars Stephen Walt and John Mearsheimer. “I remember reading a book years ago by Stephen Walt and John Mearsheimer about the influence of the Israel lobby on American foreign policy,” she said. “Nothing has illustrated the arguments in that book more clearly than what we have seen in Gaza and in the two wars fought by the United States and Israel against Iran.” That perspective leaves her skeptical that a final comprehensive deal will ever be reached. “Israel, Aipac and pro-Israel lobbying groups will not allow a final agreement between Iran and the United States unless the Islamic Republic changes its approach towards Israel,” she said. For now, that shift appears unlikely. As Iranians across the country process the news of the deal, many are focused on the simplest, most immediate outcome: an end to months of uncertainty and fear. For Sepideh, the Tehran jewellery seller, the larger political debates can wait. After months of living on the edge of war, she says her only priority is getting back to a normal life. “I just want life to feel normal again,” she said.