By Dr Azar Sepehr
Since the West’s policy of regime change in the Middle East started to destabilise and interfere in Afghanistan, Iraq, Libya and Syria, the region has been a hotbed of tension, with wars of various length and intensity impacting the lives of millions of people in these and their neighbouring countries. Millions have been displaced; thousands have become refugees in other lands. In the meantime, Israel has continued to call the shots in the region, attacking its neighbours and occupying more of their land. All this in addition to the brutal occupation of Palestine, in Gaza and the West Bank.
With the presidency of the United States having been won (inauguration January 2025) by Donald Trump the most unpredictable, so-called transactional, real estate-focused ally of the extreme right-wing Netanyahu, threats to the prospect of a two-state solution between Palestinians and Israelis, and to the Middle East has increased exponentially.
Following 12 days of destructive attacks by the Israeli military on Iran, and the Islamic Republic’s missile attack on Israel, culminating in the attack by the most advanced US bombers on nuclear facilities in Iran, the US announced that it had mediated a ceasefire between Iran and Israel. During the attacks, Iran’s towns and cities, its residential areas, airports, infrastructure, its scientists and ordinary people came under attack, with no discernible defence. Israel’s Mossad operatives assassinated high ranking military and scientific personnel with ease.
One matter of great concern in these developments is the way military aggression against Iran, and any other state, is being normalised. These attacks are in violation of international law and the UN charter and have been based on spurious claims of the attackers and their bullying tactics.
Iran’s response to the recent attacks demonstrated its severely weakened position. It did not manage to defend the country’s airspace, and its vulnerability to the penetration of Mossad was laid bare. The regime’s response has been indiscriminate arrests. There are recent reports that around 700 individuals have been arrested charged with spying. Thousands of Afghan refugees have been deported. These measures signal a new wave of oppression and fear in the country’.
The events of the Israel/US attack on Iran also showed the population’s political understanding that while under attack, the defence of the national sovereignty of Iran is paramount. The overtures of Reza Pahlavi, the former Shah’s son, to Netanyahu and Trump, supporting these barbaric attacks on Iran, met with derision among Iranians.
The people of Iran are facing two threats. One is Trump/Netanyahu’s aggression and the imperialist plans for control over Iran and the region, and the other is the dictatorial regime in Iran which has helped create tension in the region with its political Islam ideology. The target of both these forces are the progressives and the people of Iran.
Amid claim and counterclaim on how much damage has been done to Iran’s nuclear programme, there is concern about the possibility of serious nuclear contamination around the bombed sites. Iran has not released any information about leakage or contamination. However, it is inconceivable that bombardment of nuclear facilities will not have had environmental impact on the people in the facilities or near them. Trump’s statement referring to Hiroshima and Nagasaki nuclear bombs and saying ‘that is what happened’ referring to the B2 stealth bomber attacks on Fordow, Natanz and Isfahan facilities, and are of serious concern.)[1].
The Israeli attacks are reported to have impacted 36 schools that neighboured the so-called targets. 30 school children and secondary school pupils, and 7 teachers are known to have been killed. The spokesman for the judiciary has reported that at least 1,060 of those killed have been identified and buried.
The attack on Evin prison, in the last hours of the attacks, was a disaster for the prisoners. The speaker for the Judiciary has put the numbers killed in Evin at 71. At around 3 am the prisoners were transferred in appalling conditions to the Great Tehran Prison, and Qarchak Women’s Prison, without any medical treatment for those who had been injured. The destination prisons are already overcrowded and with poor conditions. Since Israel’s attacks there have been reports of raids on prison cells in the Qezelhesar prison. A number of women prisoners from Evin, Reyhane Ansari, Sakineh Parvaneh, Varisheh Moradi and Golrokh Irani, issued a statement, condemning the attacks on Iran, and declaring that the freedom of the people of Iran from dictatorship will be achieved by their own hands and not by outside states and forces that have brought the region nothing but war and destruction, such as the war criminal, Netanyahu.
Wars spell danger for the people and progressive movements. Military aggression must be condemned and stopped. It is paramount that we ensure a return to an international consensus around a rules-based order, and respect for international laws and norms. Netanyahu has been to Washington for a meeting with Trump. These two have shown complete disrespect for international and humanitarian law in their execution and support of genocide in Gaza and ethnic cleansing in the West Bank. Around 60,000 have been killed in Gaza since October 2023; over half this number consist of women and children. Israel and the US behave like bandits, and they have enough weapons to threaten countries like Iran. Trump’s statements about peace and his wish to do deals with Iran, are obscure. Any agreement will have to be supported by the UN and the international community. US, as one of the aggressors against Iran cannot broker a just deal. Given Iran’s weakened position, after this so-called ceasefire, there may be new threats.
The people of Iran want peace. Shortly after the attacks, Iran’s Mothers for Peace, issued a statement declaring: “while we press for peace and stability, we continue to call for rational decisions and negotiations to avoid the spread of war to wider dimensions”. The UN Secretary General has called for peace and diplomacy. It is up to the international community and progressives the world over to call for greater power for international organisations and for holding all countries to account.
The Democratic Organization of Iranian Women in unison with other peace-loving people in Iran says no to war and calls for support for the Iranian progressives who fight for peace, against dictatorship and against imperialism’s threats.
Long live working-class solidarity for peace, freedom and social justice.
Democratic Organization of Iranian Women (DOIW) Presentation to Unite Conference – Fringe Meeting – Brighton – 10/07/2025
The views expressed in the articles published on this website do not necessarily represent those of Liberation
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[1] The US has been preparing for this particular operation since 2009, according to the US Department of Defense (Todd Lopez, DOD News, 26 June 2025, https://www.defense.gov/News/News-Stories/Article/Article/4227082/historically-successful-strike-on-iranian-nuclear-site-was-15-years-in-the-maki/)
