On the day President Joe Biden indicated that his administration and Israeli authorities were in discussions about a potential strike on Iran’s oil facilities, over 80 advocacy organizations urgently called on the U.S. President to prevent an escalation to regional conflict prompted by Israel.
The National Iranian-American Council (NIAC) spearheaded the effort, sending a letter to President Biden with a clear message: the U.S. engaging in a war with Iran at the behest of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s far-right administration is against America’s national interests.
Organizations such as Just Foreign Policy, Friends Committee on National Legislation, IfNotNow, U.S. Campaign for Palestinian Rights, CodePink, Peace Action, and the Quincy Institute for Responsible Statecraft were among the signatories of the letter.
NIAC clarified in the letter that their primary request was for the Biden administration to use its considerable influence to curb Netanyahu’s ongoing strategy of ‘deescalation through escalation’ in the region—a tactic that has repeatedly failed and resulted in numerous civilian casualties.
The letter stressed the importance of using diplomacy, backed by the full weight of American influence, including the possibility of withholding further offensive weapon transfers to Israel, to deescalate tensions and move towards a ceasefire that would end the suffering in Gaza and Lebanon and prevent a slide into a broader regional conflict.
The groups also emphasized that Congress had not approved military action against Iran or Iran-backed militias, asserting that any military intervention should only occur after a thorough debate and authorization of war by Congress to avoid plunging American troops into imminent hostilities.
The letter highlighted recent comments by President Biden about his efforts to reduce America’s military engagements overseas, warning that without swift and decisive diplomatic action, his administration might inadvertently set the stage for another protracted conflict.
The United States has been providing substantial military aid and diplomatic support to Israel during its prolonged conflict in Gaza, a situation that has resulted in over 148,000 Palestinian casualties and has prompted a genocide case at the International Court of Justice.
Concerns over a full-scale regional war have been escalating as Israel intensifies its military actions, including the assassination of Hamas and Hezbollah leaders in Tehran and Beirut, and as Israeli troops conduct invasions in southern Lebanon accompanied by extensive bombing campaigns that have caused thousands of Lebanese casualties.
Hezbollah, a Lebanon-based political and militant group, has responded with sporadic cross-border attacks into Israel, aligning in solidarity with Gaza and resulting in numerous deaths and injuries.
Medea Benjamin, co-founder of CodePink, expressed her concerns in a video, urging Americans to contact their congressional representatives to advocate for peace. She pointed out that Netanyahu has been trying to entice the U.S. into war with Iran for years and warned that many U.S. lawmakers seem too willing to support such a conflict.
Benjamin also drew attention to comments from U.S. politicians like Rep. Jared Moskowitz (D-Fla.), who recently described attacks on Iranian nuclear sites as “fair game.” She countered this by reminding viewers that Israel, not Iran, possesses nuclear capabilities and that attacking Iran might provoke its allies to target American forces in the region.
She criticized the persistent calls for regime change in Tehran, such as those from Sen. Robert Wicker (R-Miss.), and noted the historical failures of U.S.-led regime change efforts in countries like Iraq, Libya, and Afghanistan. Benjamin emphasized that the current Iranian government’s roots can be traced back to the backlash against the U.S.’s overthrow of its democratically-elected government in 1953.
In her concluding remarks, Benjamin expressed a desire for peace, advocating for an end to support of actions perceived as genocidal and opposing further arms shipments to the region. She stressed that the American public does not desire war with Iran but rather seeks a peaceful existence.
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