The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), the nation’s largest Muslim civil rights and advocacy organization, today expressed strong opposition to the latest demands by neoconservatives and other supporters of the Israeli government for the Trump administration to launch a regime change war against Iran under the false pretense of protecting protesters, who must be able to guide their future without foreign interference or internal oppression.
CAIR expressed support for the right of Iranians to peacefully protest, condemned attacks on peaceful protesters, and condemned violent attacks by rioters, including arson attacks on mosques and desecrations of the Quran.
CAIR also called for the Trump administration to reenter into negotiations with Iran to reach a lasting compromise regarding its civilian nuclear program and U.S. economic sanctions.
In a statement, CAIR said:
“The Iranian people must be able to determine their own future without internal oppression or foreign interference, including interference by the United States and the Israeli government. That’s why we strongly oppose demands for the United States to launch another illegal attack on Iran for Israel’s benefit, this time under the false pretense of protecting protesters.
“This latest march to war with Iran has nothing to do with protecting Iranian protesters and everything to do with toppling an adversary of the Israeli government. The neoconservatives and other supporters of the Israeli government pushing for a U.S. attack on Iran know that it would likely trigger an Iranian attack on U.S. bases in the region, which could lead to a full-blown regime change war that could throw the region into chaos, all for the benefit of the Israeli government.
“Our government lacks credibility to express support for freedom in Iran because of our ongoing support for dictators across the world, including in the Middle East, and our history of launching coups to overthrow democratically-elected governments, including Iran’s democratically-elected leader in the 1950s.
“If the Trump administration cares about the lives of protesters and other civilians, it would have held the Israeli government accountable for murdering an American citizen while she peacefully protested in the West Bank last year and it would stop funding the Israeli government as it slaughters the people of Gaza on a daily basis.
“What we need in our world today is moral consistency in upholding international law.
“The United States should peacefully support the human rights of all people in the region, including the Palestinian people suffering under Israeli occupation and Arab populations living under unjust dictatorships run by U.S. allies.
“At the same time, the Iranian government should meet the Iranian people’s legitimate demands for change and support freedom instead of oppression for others in the region, including the Syrian people it helped oppress through its backing of the Assad regime.“
CAIR also called on the Trump administration to reenter the negotiations with the Iranian government that ended when Israel attacked the country last summer, saying:
“Even though signatories to the nuclear non-proliferation treaty have the right to enrich uranium for civilian purposes, even though U.S. intelligence has confirmed that Iran was not and is not pursuing a nuclear weapon, and even though Israel maintains a real rogue nuclear weapons program that should face sanctions, a compromise could entail Iran voluntarily giving up its right to enrich the uranium for its civilian nuclear program for some long period of time in exchange for the Trump administration lifting the sanctions that have devastated Iran’s economy and harmed the Iranian people.
“The alternative to reasonable compromise between the United States and Iran–and moral consistency in upholding international law–is more death, destruction, oppression and instability, egged on by the Israeli government. Our nation and the world must not fall into this trap again.”
Before the 12-day U.S.-Israel war against Iran last summer, CAIR called on President Trump to avert an “unnecessary and disastrous” all-out U.S. war with Iran by dropping Israel’s “poison pill” zero enrichment demand meant to doom nuclear negotiations.
CAIR issued a statement warning President Trump that the Netanyahu government’s insistence that the U.S. adopt a “zero enrichment” demand in negotiations was meant to scuttle the talks and lead to war, which is exactly what happened.
CAIR also condemned Israel’s unilateral offensive strikes on Iran and called on the Trump administration to immediately halt all U.S. weapons transfers and military aid to the Netanyahu government.
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CONTACT: CAIR National Deputy Director Edward Ahmed Mitchell, 404-285-9530, e-Mitchell@cair.com; CAIR Government Affairs Director Robert McCaw, 202-742-6448, rmccaw@cair.com; CAIR National Communications Director Ibrahim Hooper, 202-744-7726, ihooper@cair.com; CAIR National Communications Manager Ismail Allison, 202-770-6280, iallison@cair.com