Campaigners from the Palestine Solidarity Campaign take part in a protest outside Downing Street, London, to oppose the visit of Israeli President Isaac Herzog, September 9, 2025
A REPORT examining Britain’s complicity in Israel’s genocide in Gaza is to be published on Monday following evidence from witnesses, journalists, survivors and experts.
MP Jeremy Corbyn, alongside co-authors Dr Shahd Hammouri and Prof Neve Gordon, will present the full findings of the Gaza Tribunal.
Ahead of its publication, Mr Corbyn said the report will “help cement the government’s legacy as a participant in one of the greatest crimes of our time.”
He added that he hopes “the Gaza Tribunal serves as a landmark contribution to the campaign for justice, and as a historical repository of evidence for generations to come.”
Whistleblower and former civil servant Mark Smith told the tribunal that it was “impossible to see how the UK government was acting legally.”
Genocide denier and Current UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer is quoted that he supports Zionism without qualification. He also confirms that UK air force support has been essential in Israel’s mass-murdering genocide. Includes URLs https://www.declassifieduk.org/keir-starmers-100-spy-flights-over-gaza-in-support-of-israel/ and https://youtu.be/O74hZCKKdpAKeir Starmer objects to criticism of the IDF. He asks how could anyone object to them starving people to death, forced marches like the Nazis did, bombing Gaza’s hospitals and universities, mass-murdering journalists, healthworkers and starving people queuing for food, killing and raping prisoners and murdering children. He calls for people to stop obstructing his genocide for Israel.UK Foreign Minister David Lammy confirms that UK government and military are active participants in Israel’s genocides and that the F-35 parts that they suspended from supplying to Israel are instead simply diverted via the United States. He says see https://youtu.be/QILgUHrdWRE
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U.S. Navy warplane takes off from the aircraft carrier USS Abraham Lincoln during Operation Epic Fury targeting Iran in the Gulf of Oman, on March 01, 2026. [U.S. Navy / Handout – Anadolu Agency]
After the 12-day war in May last year, it was clear that both sides would be face-to-face soon. They restarted on 28th February 2026. Israel-US adopted the same pattern of targeting the top brass, including the Grand Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, on the very first day, thinking that in the absence of these officials, the Iranian administration would be like a rudderless ship. This would create confusion and provide an easy opportunity for regime change.
Thirteen days have passed, yet there are no visible signs of either the fall of the regime or a pause or ceasefire. Despite US-Israel’s anguish, Iran selected Mojtaba Khamenei as the new supreme leader – an act of defiance.
Both sides continue to bombard each other’s vital infrastructure, including civilian and military targets. Energy installations such as oil depots and refineries have become primary targets. Under a tit-for-tat policy, Iran has also declared that financial centers, banks, and offices of major technology companies such as Google, YouTube, and Microsoft could be the next targets. Already 26 US bases have been targeted. Following the assassination of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, the conflict rapidly expanded from a limited confrontation into a regional war, and with the blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, its effects are now visible in the global economy and in the daily lives of ordinary people. Approximately 130 oil ships are anchored, stopping 20% oil which passes through the narrow strait of 33 km. Already four ships were targeted which tried to bypass the warning.
Among the GCC countries, the UAE faced the highest number of attacks.
Iran’s aggressive response and selection of Mojtaba, a hardliner, as Ayatollah, appear to indicate that Iran is prepared for a prolonged conflict, whereas the United States and Israel seem eager to conclude the war quickly. Meanwhile, President Trump’s plan to send Kurdish Peshmerga into Iran via Iraq seems like another disaster.
Tehran had been closely and patiently observing military buildups in the Indian Ocean, the Gulf of Oman, and the Mediterranean Sea for several weeks. The United States mobilized a substantial part of its defence capabilities, including naval armadas and two aircraft carriers, Abraham Lincoln and Gerald Ford. Hundreds of fifth-generation stealth fighter jets were deployed along with advanced air-defence systems such as THAAD and large stockpiles of interceptors.
In addition, the United States strengthened its military presence across several bases in the Gulf region, including Qatar, Bahrain, Oman, the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, and Iraq.
Israel also appeared determined to launch what it described as a “fight-to-the-finish” war with the Islamic Republic. Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu repeatedly stated that he had been waiting for such a war for nearly forty years. Iran, on the other hand, has long maintained that it began preparing for such a scenario after the 2003 US-led invasion of Iraq and the fall of Saddam Hussein.
The earlier conflict in May had already revealed the strengths and weaknesses of both sides. However, the current course of the war suggests that the US–Israel alliance underestimated Iran’s military capabilities, particularly its missile and drone systems, careful planning, and effective use of its military resources.
Compared with the US–Israel alliance, Tehran appears to possess a clearer understanding of its adversaries’ strengths, limitations, and operational constraints.
Iran was also aware of its own limitations. Its air force cannot match the capabilities of US and Israeli fighter jets, and its airspace remains vulnerable to aerial attacks. As the conflict expanded, these vulnerabilities became evident. At the same time, the United States and Israel appeared to have an incomplete assessment of Iran’s capabilities. Although they possessed precise intelligence about the locations of Iranian leaders and senior officials—they killed several commanders and Ayatollah Ali Khamenei-they appeared to lack detailed knowledge of Iran’s missile infrastructure, drone networks, and underground silos developed over several decades.
It also appears that the US–Israel side underestimated the possibility of indirect assistance from Russia and China, relying heavily instead on air superiority and defensive shield systems.
Iran’s war strategy
A detailed military assessment would require expert analysis, but developments in the conflict suggest that Iran followed a three-stage strategy.
First, Iran responded to the US-Israel attacks by deploying large numbers of drones, many reportedly stored since 2011 and 2013. These drones forced US–Israel defence systems to respond with expensive interceptors. In financial terms, this created an asymmetric dynamic: Iranian drones costing between $20,000 and $50,000 were intercepted by missiles costing between $1 million and $2 million. As the wave of drone attacks continued, interceptor stocks began to decline, gradually exposing the airspace of US bases and Israel to greater risk.
Second, once defensive systems were strained, Iran launched more advanced missiles targeting radar installations, communication centres, satellites, and data facilities. Reports indicate damage to communication and data infrastructure at the Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar and at military installations in Bahrain. Such attacks disrupted surveillance and communication systems that coordinate missile defence networks such as THAAD, David’s Sling, Arrow, and Iron Dome. Command and monitoring centres that once gathered and transmitted military data across thousands of kilometres became severely limited in their operations.
Third,
Iran escalated its attacks using hypersonic missiles while adopting a tit-for-tat strategy. These strikes targeted refineries, military bases, and strategic infrastructure in Israel. Some reports suggest the use of the Khorramshahr-1 missile equipped with submunitions capable of dispersing dozens of warheads over a wide area, complicating interception efforts.
Meanwhile, attacks on naval assets reportedly forced aircraft carriers operating in the Gulf of Oman to reposition farther from the Iranian coastline.
After weakening regional defence systems, Iran announced a blockade of the Strait of Hormuz. This strait is one of the world’s most critical energy corridors, through which roughly 20 percent of global crude oil and a similar share of liquefied natural gas passes.
At present, around 130 oil tankers are reportedly anchored in the strait. Iran claims effective control over the Hormuz chokepoint.
It has targeted four vessels, including one linked to India, that attempted to pass through. Iran has reportedly deployed underwater tunnels and small, agile boats to intercept or attack ships that violate the blockade.
At the same time, attacks on energy facilities in Saudi Arabia and the temporary closure of Qatar’s Ras Laffan gas facilities disrupted global energy supplies. As a result, gas prices in Europe rose sharply while crude oil prices increased from about $62 per barrel to more than $100. Some analysts warn that if the conflict continues, oil prices could rise further, potentially reaching $200 per barrel. Such developments could trigger inflation, supply-chain disruptions, and rising unemployment worldwide.
Future of the War
Iran appears determined to pursue its objectives and may not halt operations even if a ceasefire is proposed by the United States or Israel. The selection of Mojtaba Khamenei as the new supreme authority signals continuity of leadership, consolidation of political control, and a claim of legitimacy within the existing system.
Large public gatherings during funeral processions and demonstrations suggest that, at least during wartime, sections of the population have rallied around the leadership.
Reports have also mentioned proposals to deploy Kurdish Peshmerga forces into Iran through Iraq. However, the region’s history suggests that such operations would face significant geographical and logistical difficulties. During the Iran–Iraq War, Saddam Hussein also attempted to advance through the mountainous terrain of the Zagros region but faced serious constraints.
Some Iranian sources have claimed the capture of US special forces personnel and the killing of several Israeli officials during the conflict, although many of these claims remain difficult to verify independently.
Chances of a Ceasefire
Iranian authorities have reportedly outlined three conditions for a ceasefire. First, all military attacks by the United States and Israel must stop immediately. Second, Tehran seeks assurances that such attacks will not be repeated in the future. Third, Iran demands recognition of its sovereignty and compensation for damages caused during the conflict. These conditions are not easy. Who will ensure that the U.S. and Israel would not attack in the future? Second, who will pay the reconstruction cost, etc.? It is true that regional problems can be resolved only when the issue of Palestine is resolved in a fair and just manner. Lebanon and Yemen, Syria also need attention.
Future Trajectory-Palestine solution is the only solution
Even if the present war stops, regional stability will remain uncertain. Long-standing political and security disputes remain unresolved. Israel is unlikely to abandon its strategic objectives, Greater Israel, while tensions involving Hezbollah and Hamas are likely to persist. The United States may also increase pressure on Gulf states to revise their security arrangements so that regional partners become more directly involved in future conflicts.
Implications for India
For India, energy security remains a major concern. Disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz could affect oil supplies and trade routes. Approximately 50% oil passes through the route, while Houthis are there to choke off the Red Sea navigation.
India must also prepare contingency plans for the evacuation of its 9 million workers from the region and strengthen logistical arrangements to safeguard trade and shipping routes in the event of prolonged instability. Chemical fertilizers are another major concern for India. The region provides the bulk of fertilizers and ensures food security. Disruption in supply line has significantly affected the supply of fresh vegetables, perishable items including agriproducts , poultry and meat products
In the long term, India is to sign a long term energy agreement with the US. At the same time, India needs a more coherent West Asia policy and must avoid being drawn into the region’s strategic conflicts. The region is sensitive as well as vital to India’s economy and geostrategy. India needs a careful policy.
The views expressed in this article belong to the author and do not necessarily reflect the editorial policy of Middle East Monitor.
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Climate science denier Donald Trump says that more liquid gold is being secured according to his policy of global privateeringDonald Trump explains why he established his Bored of PeaceDonald Trump warns against following the https://onaquietday.org blog, says that it’s easy atm, she only needs to report war crimes supporting Israel’s genocidal expansion.
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People take part in a protest and march gathering at Times Square on Al-Quds Day, to oppose the joint U.S.–Israel war on Iran in New York City, United States on March 13, 2026. [Mostafa Bassim – Anadolu Agency]
War is not a violation of the international order. For a select few, it is the international order working exactly as intended; a machine that converts human suffering into corporate profit, political advantage, and generational wealth. The bombs that fall are not random. They are a calculated strategy, and behind every calculation sits a balance sheet.
In 2024, the world’s top 100 arms manufacturers generated a combined $679 billion in revenue; the highest figure ever recorded in human history. American firms alone accounted for $334 billion of that total. That wealth was not created in a vacuum. It was built, contract by contract, on the rubble of Ukraine, Gaza, Lebanon, and now Iran.
When Russia invaded Ukraine in February 2022, geopolitical tensions surged and a war of survival began on both sides. Ukraine rushed westward, particularly toward the United States, for aid and military hardware. What followed was framed publicly as an act of solidarity. What it actually triggered was one of the most profitable procurement cycles in modern American history.
Raytheon’s CEO Gregory Hayes stood before investors shortly after the invasion and declared the conflict would be “very, very good” for the company’s bottom line. He was not speculating. He was reading the market. Raytheon reported a record $180 billion order backlog in the months that followed. Lockheed Martin posted net earnings of $6.9 billion in 2023; a 21 per cent increase over the previous year, while sitting on $160.6 billion worth of unfulfilled weapons contracts. The US arms export figure hit $200.8 billion in fiscal year 2024, up sharply from $157.5 billion the year before.
These are not incidental numbers. They are the architecture of a system; one that political philosopher Max Weber identified more than a century ago. In The Protestant Ethic and the Spirit of Capitalism, Weber argued that Protestant; particularly Calvinist theology provided capitalism with its moral foundation. Wealth, in this tradition, was not greed. It was divine confirmation. Accumulation was virtue. Profit was blessing.
That theological inheritance echoes loudly in the American defence industry today. A $6.9 billion profit is not merely a financial result. Within the cultural logic that shaped Western commerce, it is evidence of righteousness. And every missile fired is not a tragedy to these corporations. It is an invoice, one paid in human blood, invoiced to the taxpayer, and deposited into shareholder accounts.
The mechanism that sustains this system is not secret. It operates in full public view, protected by its own normalisation. It is called the revolving door; the seamless rotation of senior personnel between the Pentagon, the US Congress, and the private defence industry.
A 2021 report by the Government Accountability Office found that 1,700 senior US government officials had moved into arms industry positions over just five years. Over 80 per cent of retired four-star generals and admirals went directly onto defence company boards or into lobbying roles, men who spent their careers making war decisions, now paid to ensure those decisions keep coming.
In 2023, Lockheed Martin deployed 65 lobbyists in Washington. 48 of them were former government insiders. The company spent $14 million on lobbying that year alone. Since 2001, the weapons industry has collectively spent more than $2.5 billion lobbying the US Congress; roughly 700 lobbyists per year whispering into the ears of the men who decide where American bombs fall next.
The men who vote for war and the men who profit from war are, with remarkable frequency, the same men. Or they were last year. Or they will be next year.
President Dwight D. Eisenhower understood this danger intimately. In his farewell address of January 1961, he warned the American public of what he called the military-industrial complex, an alliance between the defence industry and the military establishment that, left unchecked, would corrupt democratic governance and manufacture the conditions for permanent war. He was right. The warning went unheeded. The complex grew.
Now observe what is happening in real time because theory without evidence is merely opinion, and the evidence today is overwhelming.
In the final days of February and the opening days of March 2026, the United States and Israel launched nearly 900 strikes against Iran within a single 12-hour operational window. The US military is burning through an estimated $890 million to $1 billion per day in expenditure. Iran has retaliated with hundreds of ballistic missiles and over 2,000 drones targeting US bases and Israeli territory. More than 1,700 people have been killed in eleven days of exchanges.
The economic consequences have rippled immediately across the globe. Oil prices crossed $100 per barrel for the first time since the Russia-Ukraine war. The Strait of Hormuz: the narrow chokepoint through which 20 per cent of the world’s oil supply passes is under direct threat of closure. LNG prices in Asia more than doubled in a single week after Qatar Energy declared force majeure at the world’s largest liquefaction facility. The Dow Jones Industrial Average lost over 1,000 points in a single session. Global food prices are climbing again, driven by supply chain disruption and fuel cost surges.
Civilians across Iran, Israel, Lebanon, and the Gulf are paying with their lives and livelihoods. And somewhere in Bethesda, Arlington, and the corridors of Capitol Hill, the shareholders are watching the numbers go up.
This is the economics of war in its most brutal form. One conflict. One superpower and its defence industry. One shared outcome, an entrenched elite that profits from permanent conflict, sustained by institutions too compromised, too invested, and too structurally captured to stop it.
The revolving door keeps spinning. The lobbying budgets keep growing. The order backlogs keep lengthening. And with every new conflict, every new theatre of war, every new headline about missiles and drones and civilian casualties, another procurement cycle begins.
The missiles point outward. The money flows inward, upward, always upward, toward the architects of the machine. And the machine, as long as it keeps paying, will never stop.
The views expressed in this article belong to the author and do not necessarily reflect the editorial policy of Middle East Monitor.
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Climate science denier Donald Trump says that more liquid gold is being secured according to his policy of global privateeringDonald Trump explains why he established his Bored of PeaceDonald Trump warns against following the https://onaquietday.org blog, says that it’s easy atm, she only needs to report war crimes supporting Israel’s genocidal expansion.
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A view of the United States Embassy compound in Baghdad, Iraq, where a missile attack was reported to have caused damage on March 14, 2026. [Murtadha Al-Sudani – Anadolu Agency]
The US Embassy in Iraq’s capital Baghdad came under a rocket attack early Saturday, local media reported, citing a security source, Anadolu reports.
The source told Shafaq News Agency that the attack resulted in the destruction of the embassy’s C-RAM air defense system “completely,” which is used to intercept incoming rockets and projectiles.
The news agency quoted another unnamed security source as saying that “a satellite communications system was destroyed as a result of the attack that targeted the US Embassy compound in Baghdad.”
The source explained that the damaged system was designated “to secure and exchange data via satellites for diplomatic staff and employees inside the compound.”
The source added that the US C-RAM air defense system was unable to intercept an “unidentified drone” that carried out the attack, despite its proximity to the targeted location, which led to the satellite communications system being directly hit.
No immediate reports were issued regarding casualties, and US officials have not yet commented on the incident.
Since Israel and the US launched joint attacks on Iran on Feb. 28, killing some 1,200 people, including then-Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, hostilities have escalated.
Iran has retaliated with drone and missile strikes targeting Israel, Jordan, Iraq, and Gulf countries hosting US military assets.
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Climate science denier Donald Trump says that more liquid gold is being secured according to his policy of global privateeringDonald Trump explains why he established his Bored of PeaceDonald Trump warns against following the https://onaquietday.org blog, says that it’s easy atm, she only needs to report war crimes supporting Israel’s genocidal expansion.
Rally against the war on Iran in Los Angeles. Photo: PSL LA
As the US-Israeli war on Iran reaches its third week, polls, protests, and congressional pushback suggest opposition in the United States is deepening to historic levels.
Over 1,400 people have been killed and 18,000 injured in Iran since the start of the US-Israeli war against the country on February 28. Major civilian casualties have been reported, including 160 school girls killed in an attack on their elementary school. As the conflict reaches its third week, the vast majority of people in the US are flatly rejecting another war launched in their name.
It may also be one of the most expensive wars in modern history. In the first six days, US taxpayers had already spent an estimated 11.3 billion USD. This number doesn’t factor in major costs like troop deployments, aircraft operations and maintenance, equipment losses, long-term care for wounded troops, rebuilding munitions stockpiles, and more. The total cost is much higher. The Pentagon reportedly burned through 5.6 billion USD worth of munitions in just the first 48 hours.
Gas prices in the North American country have also soared about 60 cents a gallon so far, after the Islamic Republic shut down the world’s most critical maritime energy chokepoint, the Strait of Hormuz. About 20-30% of the world’s oil supply has been jammed in the region, lowering its availability and raising its price. A barrel of oil sold for 60 USD before Washington launched the war on Iran. Today the price has reached 100 USD per barrel. A spokesperson for Iran’s military command, Ebrahim Zolfaqari, warned this week: “Get ready for oil to be $200 a barrel, because the oil price depends on regional security, which you have destabilized.”
As the economic and humanitarian effects accelerate, polls, protests, strikes, and even pushback in the US Congress are reflecting a population that is increasingly opposed to funding this war.
Trump officials: “Death and destruction from the sky”
Despite the opposition across the country, the White House has resolved to continue the war “until the mission is complete”. The question circulating within the US government, however, remains: what exactly is the mission?
US officials have offered a range of different answers, including: preventing Iran from acquiring nuclear weapons, destroying Iran’s missile capabilities, weakening the Iranian government, and even regime change.
In a Pentagon update on March 4, Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth described the strategy this way: “Every minute of every day until we decide it’s over … Death and destruction from the sky all day long.”
“No one is putting us in danger. We’re putting the other guys in danger. The only people who need to be worried right now are Iranians who think they are going to live,” he said, a few days later in a 60 Minutes interview.
On Fox News on March 8, Senator Lindsey Graham said: “We’re gonna blow the hell out of these people. This regime is in a death row now. It is gonna be on its knees. It’s going to fall.”
While several officials have commented about defeating the regime in Iran, in an early press conference about the war, Hegseth said that this was not a “regime-change war” – the mission was to “destroy Iran’s missiles, navy and deny Tehran nuclear weapons”.
When asked why Washington is waging war on Iran, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said, “Well look, Iran chants ‘death to America,’ so you tell me if that’s a threat”.
From declarations of total destruction to casual boasts about civilian casualties, the administration’s rhetoric has been as extreme as it is inconsistent.
Despite the brazenness of Trump officials, there are signs that confidence may be shakier behind closed doors. The Guardian recently reported that Iranian officials have rejected multiple ceasefire requests. Instead, Iranian leaders “believe there can be no end to the conflict until it believes Trump has been shown the economic, political and military cost is so high that it is not worth repeating.”
The contrast between public bravado and private negotiation highlights the administration’s lack of a clear strategy.
Congressional pushback: No endgame, no strategy
With objectives unclear and costs reaching the tens of billions, opposition within Congress surfaced quickly. Senate Democrats and lawmakers expressed genuine frustration with the administration’s war justifications and oversight in general.
Key lawmakers emerged from a series of classified briefings earlier this week visibly alarmed and dismayed at what they had just been told about the strategy and goals of the conflict.
Senator Chris Murphy was among the most outspoken. He described the administration’s war plans as “totally incoherent” and lacking any clear endgame. He claimed that neither destroying Iran’s nuclear program nor regime change were listed as goals, raising serious questions about what possible objectives this military aggression was meant to achieve. The senator also noted that congressional authorization for the war would almost certainly fail because “the American people would demand their members of Congress vote no”.
The classified briefings left Senator Richard Blumenthal “dissatisfied and angry”. He said it was one of the most frustrating security briefings of his career, highlighting that there appears to be no endgame. “We seem to be on a path toward deploying American troops on the ground in Iran to accomplish any of the potential objectives here”, a prospect the senator says Congress and the public deserve much clearer explanations for.
A bloc of Senate Democrats, including Elizabeth Warren, and Chris Van Hollen, has pressed for more public accountability, demanding not just better strategic information but accountability for strikes that have caused severe harm, such as the confirmed US strike on a girls elementary school in Minab, Iran.
Meanwhile, congressional efforts to pass war-powers resolutions to force the president to seek formal authorization have so far failed.
The people of the US, on the other hand, are asserting that there is no justification for the war at all. Instead of seeking an explanation or even congressional authorization, a new anti-war movement is demanding an immediate end to the aggression. People have continued to mobilize since the first bombs fell on Tehran.
Anti-war movement builds in the streets
In the days immediately after the initial US-Israeli airstrikes on Iran, emergency protests broke out across the country. Following this first wave of demonstrations, actions have continued and are gaining momentum as the war escalates.
A coalition of organizations, including ANSWER, The Peoples Forum NYC, the Palestinian Youth Movement, and the Party for Socialism and Liberation, held a national day of action on March 7 against the war on Iran. Protests and rallies were seen in cities both large and small chanting “Stop bombing Iran now!” and “Money for jobs and education!”
Anti-war veterans were particularly outspoken at these actions, especially after veteran and anti-war activist Brian McGinnis was assaulted by Capital police in Washington DC for protesting the war on Iran. Several men broke his arm in the assault as he yelled “No one wants to fight for Israel!” during a US Senate Subcommittee meeting.
“To all those who are not yet deployed: Now is the time to resist!”
The very next day, International Women’s Day, various cities held yet another wave of protests against the war on Iran. The demonstrations highlighted how women and children are increasingly the direct victims of wars and among the first to suffer from displacement and economic devastation. Iranian-American women in particular spoke out at many of these rallies, highlighting the cost to US taxpayers.
“This war is costing us about one billion dollars a day. That is insane,” said Hanieyh, a protestor in the Bay Area.
Protestors have vowed to continue mobilizing on US streets until the human and economic cost of the war abroad becomes impossible to ignore.
Civilian casualties, black rain, and disaster: the toll of a war without limits
War crimes and violations of international law have been alleged since the opening days of the war. In one instance, a US submarine torpedoed and sank a defenseless Iranian frigate, “IRIS Dena”, in the Indian Ocean as it was returning from participating as a guest in the multinational naval exercise MILAN, hosted by India. The vast majority of the crew (160 sailors) were killed in the strike. In another horrific attack, US-Israeli airstrikes targeted fuel depots near Tehran, triggering massive oil fires that raged for days. Eyewitnesses reported giant black clouds covering the capital and “oily rain” falling on a city of 10 million civilians. Scientists say burning oil at this scale releases massive amounts of hydrocarbons, sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxides, heavy metals, and soot into the atmosphere. When rain forms in such a polluted environment, it falls as toxic and oily “black rain”.
When one of the opening strikes killed Supreme Leader Ayatollah Seyed Ali Khamenei, Iran responded in the way it had long warned the United States and the region it would if attacked. The Islamic Republic targeted Israel, US bases across West Asia, and allied military installations in Qatar, Bahrain, Kuwait, Iraq, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, and others. Iran is currently launching its 40th wave of retaliatory strikes under “Operation True Promise 4”, according to the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC).
After Reuters reported 150 US soldiers had been wounded from these attacks, the Pentagon revised its initial report of fewer than a dozen wounded US service members, now acknowledging about 140 injuries.
Western media has claimed 7 US soldiers have been killed so far in Iran’s retaliatory attacks. Although, some critics and analysts question that total, suggesting casualties are likely higher based on the scale of the war. Trump himself famously said about the first dead soldiers, “Sadly, there will likely be more before it ends. That’s the way it is.”
Escalation abroad, opposition at home
As the war enters its third week, the gap between the White House’s policy and public opinion continues to widen. While the Trump administration insists the bombing will continue “until the mission is complete,” it remains unclear what that mission actually is and how many lives, billions of dollars, and devastated cities it will take to achieve it.
For millions of people in the United States, the answer is increasingly simple: there is no justification for the war at all.
Between the staggering financial cost, the mounting civilian casualties (many of them children), and the absence of a coherent strategy, opposition to the war has spread far beyond traditional anti-war circles. Polls show overwhelming public disapproval, members of Congress are openly questioning the administration’s objectives, and a growing movement in the streets is demanding an immediate end to the bombing.
Whether Washington chooses to search for an exit to the war it started remains to be seen. But one fact is clear: the vast majority of people in the US are unwilling to support another endless war fought in their name.
Campaigners from the Palestine Solidarity Campaign take part in a protest outside Downing Street, London, to oppose the visit of Israeli President Isaac Herzog, September 9, 2025
