Dear John,

Make no mistake about it: Israel is doing everything that it can to stoke a war with Iran before Donald Trump leaves office. Today, in an act of flagrant disregard for international law, Iran’s top nuclear scientist Mohsen Fakhrizadeh was assassinated outside of Tehran by Israel with the possible assistance of the Iranian terror group the MEK. 

We are worried about an escalation to an all-out U.S.-Iran war and you should be too. Join our call to world leaders, asking them to publicly condemn this outrageous and provocative assassination. Joe Biden, who has stated that he will be seeking to return to the Iran Nuclear Deal, should speak out against this attempt to further inflame the Middle East conflict and destroy any chances of reestablishing diplomacy with Iran.

The illegal execution of Fakhrizadeh took place in the city of Absard outside Tehran, Iran, by a bombing followed by a gunfight. In 2018, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s identified Fakhrizadeh as a target for his administration, and in the past, Israel has assassinated other Iranian nuclear scientists. Moreover, reports over the past week indicated that the Israeli government instructed its senior military officials to prepare for a possible U.S. strike on Iran. The assassination also follows recent reports that Donald Trump contemplated bombing Iran’s nuclear facility, before being talked out of it by Pentagon leaders. 

Iran has been acting with extreme patience these past few years. Since Donald Trump tore up the JCPOA agreement in 2018, showing Iran that the U.S. is not to be trusted to make good on its word, Iran has endured much in the past four years, including brutal sanctions affecting everything from the price of food and housing to the ability to obtain life-saving medicines, the U.S.’s illegal assassination of General Qasim Solemani, sabotage at one of their nuclear facilities (likely also committed by Israel), and attacks on other industries. Despite all this, Iran has not yet taken overt retaliation significant enough to lead to war. But whether or not they overtly and quickly retaliate this time, grave damage has been done and the world must respond with strong condemnation. The assassination of Fakhrizadeh has sent a clear message that Israel was given a green light by the U.S. to act illegally and with impunity against Iran. This will likely harden positions inside Iran, making it far more difficult for Joe Biden to revive diplomacy. Add your name now to our call to world leaders, including Biden, to condemn this outrageous and provocative act of war and assault on diplomacy.

Towards diplomacy, 
Ariel, Leila, Medea, and the entire CODEPINK team: Angela, Ann, Carley, Caty, Cody, Danaka, Emily, Farida, Jodie, Kelsey, Leonardo, Maxine, Mary, Michelle, Nancy, Paki, Teri, and Yousef