“I was twenty-two during World War II. First the English...

“I was twenty-two during World War II. First the English invaded us from the south, then the Russians invaded us from the north. They had a lot more men than us and the city completely ran out of food. I saw many horrible scenes. My job was to distribute bread from the bakery. Crowds would gather and wait for the handouts. One winter night I found a mother sitting against the bakery wall, nursing her child. I went to give her a loaf of bread, but only the child was alive.”

(Tehran, Iran)