Today the U.S. and Israel launched an unprovoked war of aggression on Iran, dropping bombs on cities across the country and calling for regime change. While the death toll is not known, at least 80 children were killed after a strike on a girls’ school in southern Iran. Iran responded by firing missiles at Israel and U.S. military bases in Bahrain, Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates, and Qatar. The Trump administration has said it will continue to bomb, and the death toll will surely continue to rise, with uncontrollable implications in the wider region.
As a Quaker organization, we know that war is never the path to peace. We mourn the deaths of all the victims, and we hold their loved ones and communities in the Light. We call on the U.S. and people across the world to take immediate action to stop this from escalating into an endless and global war.
This war is immoral and illegal under both U.S. and international law. The justifications used by the Trump administration all center on blatant lies. Iran has no long-range missiles that can reach the U.S. Iran had not restarted nuclear weapons production and likely lacks the immediate capacity to do so. The Iranian government has repeatedly said that it has no interest in nuclear weapons and has been willing to negotiate despite repeated U.S. escalations. The Trump administration refused to negotiate in good faith and cannot use the inevitable “failure” of those negotiations as an excuse for war. According to U.S. law, the president must seek congressional approval before engaging in hostilities against another country. Congress is set to vote on a War Powers resolution in a matter of days.
For years, the U.S. has been taking steps to increase the likelihood of nuclear war. The U.S. has let major nonproliferation treaties expire and is investing over $1 trillion in nuclear weapons over the next decade. The U.S. government is itself the greatest impediment to nuclear nonproliferation.
President Trump says he wants regime change in Iran. History shows us that regime changes imposed by imperialist violence are devastating failures even on their own terms. Attempting this in Iran would almost certainly require a protracted war with U.S. troops on the ground and significant casualties.
The U.S. is also pointing to Iran’s human rights record as justification for these attacks. The killing of thousands of protesters by the Iranian government is horrific, but waging war against Iran will not bring peace or human rights. The U.S. government cannot claim the moral high ground while it disappears people at home, restricts political rights, and pursues a policy of murder and assassination in Latin America. The U.S. has no credibility to talk about human rights after more than two years of supporting Israel’s genocide in Gaza and unilateral attacks on neighboring countries. Last year alone, Israel bombed Lebanon, Yemen, Syria, Iran, Qatar, and the occupied Palestinian territory.
Congress must act immediately to assert its authority and stop further killing. Congress must also act to reverse the Trump administration’s imperialist “might makes right” foreign policy. Since December 2025, the U.S. has attacked Nigeria, Venezuela, and Iran while also murdering alleged drug traffickers in the Caribbean and Pacific. All of these actions make the world less safe while undermining international law and key multilateral peacebuilding systems. The U.S.—not Iran—is currently the most significant threat to international peace and security.
But we cannot leave this to Congress alone. People should make their voices heard. Call Congress, take to the streets, protest, and engage in acts of nonviolent resistance to make it clear that the U.S. public does not stand behind this war. This moment demands all of us.
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The American Friends Service Committee (AFSC) promotes a world free of violence, inequality, and oppression. Guided by the Quaker belief in the divine Light within each person, we nurture the seeds of change and the respect for human life to fundamentally transform our societies and institutions. We work with people and partners worldwide, of all faiths and backgrounds, to meet urgent community needs, challenge injustice, and build peace.