The Feminist Foreign Policy Memo is a monthly publication by MADRE to share updates from our global partners and provide US policy recommendations to support frontline, feminist, grassroots movements for justice, accountability, and peace.

MADRE
ADVOCACY & POLICY

SPECIAL EDITION

Iran & the Violence of War

The United States and Israel have launched a dangerous war of aggression seeking regime change in Iran, with a campaign of airstrikes that have killed more than 750 people in less than three days. We denounce these attacks, illegal under both US and international law, and we call for an immediate end to the bombings and a return to diplomacy.

One strike on Saturday killed over 165 people in a girls’ school. One father, Mohammed Shariatmadar, lost his six-year-old daughter, Sara. He said, “My heart is broken. For Sara and for all the children we lost today. I want the world to know that the children are the real victims. Every day that passes without a solution increases the pain and the suffering for the families and for the children alike."

In the face of these brutal losses, we are reminded of James Baldwin’s words: “The children are always ours, every single one of them, all over the globe; and I am beginning to suspect that whoever is incapable of recognizing this may be incapable of morality.”

Already, Iran has launched retaliatory strikes against US and Israeli targets across the region. The situation is already spiraling out of control, with escalating violence, fracturing peace deals, impacts to regional and global economies, and dangers to millions of lives.

In neighboring Iraq and around the region, Iranian-backed militias have been emboldened by the war. These groups, whose ascendance can be traced directly to the US occupation of Iraq, have long sought to eradicate Iraqi women’s rights activists and LGBTIQ+ people.

On Monday, in Baghdad, our longtime partner, beloved friend and renowned women’s rights leader, Yanar Mohammed, was assassinated by one of these militias. We mourn Yanar’s death and rededicate ourselves to continuing her work.

Since December, Iranian people have risen up again for their human rights and freedoms. In response, the state retaliated against them with a violent crackdown. This is a repressive pattern that has repeated over years – including in the suppression of the Woman, Life, Freedom movement. Like all people, the people of Iran deserve the full range of protections established by the global human rights movement. These include guarantees of democratic participation, freedom from gender-based violence, bodily autonomy, freedom of movement and expression, and more. We stand against the widespread abuses of these rights by the regime and with all people mobilizing for this rights-based vision.

This is not the first time that the US has launched wars in the name of democracy. In Iraq, the US invasion triggered a war that ultimately killed 315,000 people, and in Afghanistan, women’s rights promises made to justify that invasion were repeatedly broken. In neither case did US warmaking defeat authoritarianism or defend democracy.

The real solution to defend democracy lies in grassroots movements and solidarity with those who still struggle for justice and real peace.

Similarly, the most effective conflict resolution lies at the negotiating table. Once, a deal with Iran successfully constrained its nuclear program. Trump tore up that deal, removing carefully negotiated guardrails, and has now used Iran’s nuclear development as an excuse for this attack.

Trump justifies these attacks in the name of “national security,” a refrain he’s used to continually and illegitimately expand his powers. Closer to home, he’s rallied the same argument to justify his crackdown on immigrants and his repression of protest. None of this makes us safer, and only serves to consolidate his power.

We must hold the line against all of it. This week, Congress has the opportunity to vote to rein in U.S. militarism and end illegal strikes on Iran. Together, we have the opportunity to protect civilians and human rights defenders across the region.

Support the War Powers Resolutions on Iran

MADRE is a global women's human rights organization and feminist fund partnering with grassroots groups worldwide to meet urgent needs and create lasting change.

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