Protests erupt calling for Trump, U.S. to stay out of war in Middle East
Americans are taking to the streets to protest U.S. military involvement in Iran. Protestors expect their numbers to swell this week.
WASHINGTON − Protests against the U.S. military involvement in Iran, including some in New York and outside the White House June 22, are expected to continue throughout the week in communities across the country.
The protests come on the heels of President Donald Trump ordering attacks on three nuclear facilities in Iran. Demonstrations took place June 22 in Washington, New York and Boston.
“The people of the United States don’t want another forever war. The people of the United States want money for people’s needs!’’ the Party for Socialism and Liberation posted on X.
The protests, some of them organized in part by the ANSWER (Act Now to Stop War and End Racism) Coalition, an anti-war group, call for Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to stop the war on Iran.
ANSWER is a left-wing group that has organized protests against the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan and other U.S. military actions, including some that have drawn hundreds of thousands of people. Earlier this year, the organization was part of a coalition of groups across the country protesting in the days after Trump’s inauguration.
Other protests are planned in the coming week, including a national ‘‘Stop the War on Iran’’ march set for June 28 in Washington. Demonstrators also rallied across the globe, including in Japan and Iran.
Trump administration officials defended the attacks, and Trump threatened possible further actions.
"If peace does not come quickly, we will go after those other targets with precision, speech and skill," Trump said June 21 at the White House.
Congress was set to return to Washington this week. Many Republican lawmakers applauded Trump’s move.
“President Trump has been consistent and clear that a nuclear-armed Iran will not be tolerated,’’ House Speaker Mike Johnson, R-Louisiana, said in a statement. “That posture has now been enforced with strength, precision, and clarity.’’
Some Democrats, however, blasted Trump's “unilateral decision” to attack Iran without congressional approval, calling it illegal.
“This move, a rash sequel to his withdrawal from the nuclear deal, puts our nation, our troops, and innocents at grave risk,’’ Rep. James Clyburn, D-South Carolina, said in a statement. “Trump promised to be a peacemaker and vowed to avoid plunging the U.S. into more wars in the Middle East. This attack is inconsistent with his promise to the American people.”
Contributing: Sarah Wire