Workers Party of Massachusetts

February 28th 2026 - Workers Party of MA Statement on American/Israeli War on Iran

The Workers Party of Massachusetts unequivocally condemns the latest U.S. and Israeli military strikes against Iran. In the first day the lives of Ayatollah Khomeini, 30 some other government officials as well as 148 Iranian schoolgirls were ended for seemingly no reason. To understand this moment, it's important to look at the history of Iran/US relations and the root of US imperialism around the world.

These attacks are not an isolated event. They are the result of 75 years of imperialist intervention, coercion, sanctions, and regime-change doctrine directed at a sovereign nation by the United States and other Western powers.

The Historical Record
1951 – Prime Minister Mohammad Mosaddegh nationalizes Iranian oil, challenging British corporate control.
1951–1953 – The U.S. and Britain impose embargoes, sabotage, and destabilization.
1953 – CIA/MI6 coup (Operation Ajax) overthrows Mosaddegh. The Shah is installed as an autocratic ruler. Oil returns to Western control. This becomes the modern regime-change template.
1953–1979 – The Shah governs with U.S. backing. Political repression intensifies. Leftists and labor are crushed. Iran functions as a regional outpost of U.S. power.
1979 – The Iranian Revolution overthrows the Shah. A multi-class uprising. Islamist forces consolidate power while sidelining and repressing the socialist left.
1979–1981 – U.S. freezes Iranian assets and begins long-term sanctions. Hostility becomes institutionalized.
1980–1988 – During the Iran-Iraq war, Western powers assist Iraq despite its use of chemical weapons against Iranian civilians. Iran militarizes under siege.
1990s–2015 – Cycles of sanctions escalate under the banner of “non-proliferation.”
2015 – The JCPOA nuclear agreement temporarily reduces tensions.
2018 – The U.S. withdraws and reimposes “maximum pressure” sanctions.
2020 – Qasem Soleimani is assassinated by U.S. forces.
2020-present- Sanctions, encirclement, and proxy confrontations intensify.
2025–2026 – Israeli strikes on nuclear facilities. U.S. forces join bombing campaigns. Internal unrest in Iran is openly instrumentalized by foreign intelligence services. Public messaging shifts from “containment” to language implying regime change.

The Present
Iran is currently encircled by U.S. bases, subjected to long-term sanctions that have devastated working-class living standards, and is being framed as a destabilizing force in the region by the nations who have orchestrated the assault on their sovereignty.

Today's offensive attacks by the US and Israel are not defensive or "humanitarian". They are the continuation of sustained economic warfare, political destabilization, and military dominance and must be condemned. Sanctions have already functioned as collective punishment and disproportionally harm civilians. Military escalation during negotiations shows that the US and Israel had no intentions of resolving anything peacefully.

The West bears the responsibility for any and all escalations as a result of this shameful bombing campaign. Reports are coming in that the US and Israel are already responsible for the destruction of 2 schools in Iran, including a girls' school in Minab. These barbaric actions reflect the Israeli strategies unleashed upon Gaza and others in the region.

The Workers Party of Massachusetts calls for:
-Immediate cessation of U.S. and Israeli military operations
-Congressional war-powers enforcement and an end to unilateral executive war making
-Lifting of sanctions that punish civilians
-A return to diplomatic engagement without regime-change conditions

The Workers Party of Massachusetts stands in solidarity with the working class of Iran and all those in the region. We stand for the sovereignty of Iran. We stand against the imperialist regimes and their inhumane actions in the region.