The US has Declared War with Iran
By: Cecilia Fountain
3/5/26
On February 28, the U.S. and Israel launched an unprovoked attack on Iran. The first bomb that hit a school killed at least 175 people which was mostly children. With this first wave of bombs it also killed the Iranian leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. This attack is not legal and has false justification from our President.
Iran is located in the Middle East. To the east, it borders Turkmenistan, Afghanistan, and Pakistan and to the west it borders Turkiye and Iraq. To its north, it has the Caspian Sea and to the south, it has the Persian Gulf. The Middle East has always been a place of immense tension and war. The Persian gulf is also very important since it contains 50%, or 2/3s of the world’s oil reserves. Also, the Persian Gulf has the Strait of Hormuz within it which is a vital shipping strip in the Middle East; this is a shipping strip imperative for the U.S. so it can stay within the global trade of energy. It is important for this not to be disturbed because it can disrupt the global market of oil. Raising gas pricing globally by as much as 25%.
This war is not legal under US law. The President does not have the authority to send nuclear weapons and bombs to another nation without Congress’s approval. The Constitution states that the President must seek Congressional approval before engaging in hostilities against another country. President Donald Trump did not do that. This war is also illegal under international law. The United Nations charter prohibits the use of force against the territorial integrity or political independence of any country. This means a country apart from the UN may not attack another country with military force to destroy a country’s independence or territory. This means that because the U.S. not only destroyed the territory of Iran but also killed their leader, the US went against international law. The only reason Iran could be attacked is if Iran deliberately provokes and uses military force against US territory. Iran did no such thing. Giving the US no right to bomb Iran
However, the Trump administration is still trying to justify the war it created. President Trump has been deliberately stating that Iran was posing an imminent threat to the U.S. through missiles. Yet Iran has no long-range missiles that could hit the U.S. and is decades away from having the equipment to build them. The Defense Intelligence Agency itself has said that Iran has no program in place to produce these kinds of weapons. Also, the U.S. bombed the only nuclear weapons facilities in Iran in 2025, which destroyed most of Iran’s nuclear and uranium supplies.
Further, days before the U.S. attacked Iran, the Iranian government had announced that Iran was willing to sign a comprehensive nuclear nonproliferation agreement. This means Iran would formally agree not to manufacture or produce nuclear weapons to help reduce the transfer of harm they would inevitably create. This would promote a legally binding pledge to promote disarmament and international security. But the Trump administration did not want to negotiate and chose war over diplomacy.
The Trump administration has also pointed out Iran’s human rights record as justification for these attacks. This is quickly horrific with the Iranian government just recently killing protesters. But waging a war in a place that already had international struggles will not help human rights or the Iranian people. The U.S. can hardly be talking about human right now when it supported Israel which has created mass genocide in Gaza and bombed Lebanon, Yemen, Syria, Iran, and Qatar.
Which brings me to my next point about how this war is over, helping allied countries stay in power which would consolidate U.S. power. Israel is one of the only countries in the Middle East that is in mostly good relationships with the U.S.. Although the Middle East has its issues, it is still a major trading and connection site to the rest of Asia and the world. Israel has been continuing to bomb surrounding countries to gain dominance within the Middle East. If Israel gets control of the Middle East then so does the U.S. One of the biggest countries standing in Israel’s way is Iran. Meaning if someone was to help take out Iran it would greatly improve Israel’s ability to seize control of the Middle East. So the US takes action and bombs Iran.
The outcome of this war and how long it lasts isn’t pretty. The perfect scenario for the U.S. is that Iranian forces will give up/lay their arms down and allow either Israel or the U.S. to put in some form of government or for the Iranian government to stay in place and work for the U.S. and Israel agenda, giving them a massive supply of resources (this is what happened in Venezuela). However, this scenario doesn’t seem to be likely. More likely is that Iran hunkers down, firing off missiles and drones whenever they can, hoping to get some advantage. Although Iran couldn’t actually attack/bomb the U.S., it can hit military bases which are spread out all over the world with 100 to 10,000 men and women operating within them. It could also cause a civil war within Iran. Several hurt the instant Iranian civilians, and lead to more chaos.
Although this war may not affect a day-to-day life, it does show the lengths the US will go to have power. Risking instant lives, violating not only international but also US law, and raising gas princesses for everyone globally.
https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cx2dyz6p3weo
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iran
https://currentaffairs.adda247.com/list-of-bordering-countries-of-iran/
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https://www.cbsnews.com/news/could-iran-attack-us-homeland/
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https://afsc.org/news/what-you-need-know-about-us-war-iran
https://www.eia.gov/todayinenergy/detail.php?id=65504#:~:text=In%202024%2C%20the%20United%20States,imports%20from%20Canada%20have%20increased.
https://www.fbi.gov/investigate/counterintelligence/the-iran-threat