Dear John,
We were deeply disturbed by the reports of an Israeli military strike in Isfahan last night which risked triggering a new cycle of violence in the brewing conflict between Israel and Iran. It is ordinary people who suffer from war, far more than the leaders who recklessly throw lives away in militaristic policies.
Fortunately, this strike appears to have been relatively minor, and Iran is downplaying the seriousness. We hope this signals that both Israel and Iran, with the United States, are choosing to take off-ramps to conflict before they disappear. The last thing we need is a new war of choice spanning across borders and threatening the lives of Iranians, Israelis, Americans and all the peoples of the region.
This is a moment that calls for moral courage. Some leaders in Washington are meeting that test and standing up against war and for human rights.
But others - including President Joe Biden and Congressional leadership - are failing and continuing to provide a blank check for war and escalation.
Congress is poised to advance - with the President’s blessing - a massive $26 billion Israeli military aid package that includes several billions of dollars in unrestricted offensive weaponry for Israel and expansive new sanctions on Iran. With Israel planning a possible military incursion into Rafah and facing no accountability for its actions in Gaza or its illegal strikes on an Iranian diplomatic facility conducted without US knowledge that risked dragging the US into regional war, it is hard to think of a worse signal this sends. Many lawmakers are accepting what they view as obvious failings of this package because it also includes military assistance for Ukraine.
The package will include four separate votes in the House of Representatives on Saturday. The first three will be military assistance for Israel, Ukraine and Taiwan, respectively. The fourth, to sweeten the package for Republicans, is a hodge-podge of legislation that has been working its way through Congress. Most concerningly, the bill includes expansive sanctions on Iran with extremely limited waiver authorities for the president. After the votes, the House of Representatives will package the bills together and send them on to the Senate for a final vote.
NIAC is very concerned by this package as a whole, and believes that we should not provide a blank check for Israel’s war on Gaza nor for unchecked regional escalation against Iran. We also oppose new broad oil sanctions on Iran that are entirely divorced from a feasible diplomatic strategy. Speaker Johnson’s package is not aimed at supporting de-escalation, but rather enflaming tensions. As a result, we will urge lawmakers to reject it.
It looks like Benjamin Netanyahu is playing Biden and Congress like a fiddle. By attacking the Iranian consulate in Damascus and triggering an Iranian retaliation, the outrage lawmakers have felt over Israel’s bombing of the World Central Kitchen humanitarian aid convoy has dissipated and everyone is looking for a way to add pressure onto Iran. There is very little consideration for whether this is a coherent strategy, or to pump the breaks on a march to war.
We’ve also seen a series of awful votes [[link removed]] in the House of Representatives this week where many Democratic lawmakers waived the flag of surrender instead of standing up for peace and civil rights. This includes a vote to push for a ban on travel [[link removed]] to Iran under a U.S. passport that risks criminalizing travel for members of our community. It is a slippery slope to severing our ability to travel and visit family, and is unacceptable. It also includes a non-binding vote pledging full support for an Israeli military response to Iran, which would guarantee a regional war. Only 14 Members of Congress voted against it. These will move on to the Senate, where we will work to prevent them from passing, but are not included in the massive package that could become law in a matter of days.
At NIAC, we don’t blow with the wind. We are going to stand up and demand peace even when lawmakers and others who claim to speak for the people of Iran are calling to attack Iran. And we are proud to have dedicated, passionate volunteers and supporters who care not just about peace, civil rights and prosperity for all Iranians but for everyone who is impacted by war today and could be in the future.
If this work for peace is important to you, we need your help. We rely on the grassroots support of our community to fuel everything we do, so please make a donation to support our efforts at this critical time.
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Thanks for your support,
Jamal Abdi
President, NIAC
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