Scottish family in Qatar hid in cupboard during Iran missile attack

A Scottish man and his wife who live in Qatar hid in a cupboard and told their young children that missile noise was a thunderstorm during airstrikes from the US-Israel war with Iran.

Alex Demianczuk, 46, and his American wife Christina Paschyn, 40, have lived in Doha since 2011, and have two children aged four and six.

The husband and wife, from Edinburgh and Cleveland, Ohio, respectively, have been sheltering since the conflict erupted.

They say they have now told their children that it is "countries fighting" and they hope the war ends "as soon as possible".

The region has been plunged deeper into crisis after Iran's Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was killed in an attack on Saturday.

Missile and drone strikes were launched by the US and Israel following the breakdown of talks on the country's nuclear activities.

Iran responded with a barrage of rocket and missile attacks on neighbouring countries.

Paschyn told BBC Scotland News: "The first two days were more intense.

"You would get the constant waves of missiles, and you could hear the explosions.

"We told the kids that it was a big thunderstorm. I know it sounds ridiculous."

She added: "I was at a dance class with my daughter when the notification came in from the US Embassy on my phone that Israel attacked Iran and it was time to shelter.

"So I grabbed her and said it's a big thunderstorm and we have to get home."

She said they kept up the ruse for the first few days of the conflict.

"We finally told them the truth yesterday, in a child-friendly way, so they're aware," she said. "And they were like 'where's the rain?'

"We explained it's like countries fighting, they're having a bad fight, but we're staying safe in our house, to make sure nothing happens to us."

Her husband said it had been "surprisingly quite calm actually", albeit a "little bit anxious at times".

"Things are a bit out of our control at the minute," he added.

"We've got to try to stay as calm as possible for our kids, so they're not getting overly stressed out and anxious.

"It seems to be the Qataris are doing their job and intercepting the missiles, so we're feeling pretty safe."

The couple say they have seen the missile interceptor trails from their home.

Demianczuk said the children seemed ok "but at their age I don't think they quite fully comprehend the severity of everything".

He added: "They're just happy that they're off school, and having extended screen time I guess.

"Day-to-day living is being inside the house. A lot of it is pacing up and down."

His wife said the scariest time was during the night, as she feared missiles would most likely be fired then.

"It's scary when the explosions do happen, and then we run to the pantry, without any windows," she said.

"One precaution we are taking, as soon as they fall asleep, we bring [the children] back into our room so we are all together.

"You're afraid to go outside because of the explosions. It could get a lot worse."

She added: "We're all just hoping for this war to end as soon as possible."