June 23, 2025
Trump’s bombing of Iran’s nuclear sites are an act of war, inflaming a conflict and further threatening millions of lives across the region. As a human rights organization and feminist fund, MADRE pledges our active solidarity with communities that are most impacted by the worsening violence and instability.
We also join with organizations calling for an end to this war and for the US Congress to exert its constitutional power to block Trump’s unauthorized action against Iran by supporting the bipartisan War Powers Resolution.
Since Israel launched its attack on Iran just over a week ago, the human impact has been clear. In Iran and Israel, people have been forced to flee their homes or take cover in bomb shelters, and the death toll keeps rising. In Israel and the Occupied West Bank, Palestinians are denied access to this protection, with one report showing that “60 out of 71 Arab municipalities in Israel have no public shelters.”
This war will not make people safer, in Israel or anywhere else, no matter what Trump and Netanyahu claim.
This US bombing was not only illegal, unconstitutional, and disastrous; it also undermines Trump’s own stated aims of preventing Iran’s development of nuclear weapons. One of the most effective avenues towards that goal was the Iran nuclear deal, which Trump abandoned and Biden failed to revive. After these bombings, the path back to the negotiating table is imperiled and narrowing, as are the chances to avert greater nuclear danger.
Furthermore, by joining Israel’s latest attack on Iran – after more than 20 months of arming genocide in Gaza – Trump has once again confirmed the US as an enabler and direct participant in Israel’s crimes.
This war also creates a political opening for authoritarian leaders to further suppress domestic dissent. Iran’s Women, Life, Freedom movement has faced years of retaliation against their organizing for gender justice and democracy. This war has created a political opening for the government to intensify its repression. Meanwhile, US Customs and Border Protection issued a memo on Saturday warning agents to be vigilant against the “threat of sleeper cells,” a rationale sure to be used to accelerate the crackdown on migrants.
Trump campaigned as a so-called peacemaker, but instead he has delivered on a decades-long right-wing dream to bomb Iran. He gave an ultimatum to Iran in his televised speech, just hours after the US strike, demanding that they “must now make peace,” or risk more violent consequences. This makes a mockery of the real work of peacemaking, which is rooted in diplomacy and trust-building, and led by people who prioritize community needs for safety.
For decades, MADRE has partnered with grassroots women-led organizations in countries across the Middle East region that have been devastated by violent US foreign policies. When wars explode, women and girls bear particular costs, as targets of violence and as caregivers in a crisis. In Iran, Palestine, Syria, Iraq, Yemen and beyond, our local partners have provided life-saving care to the most vulnerable and advanced the real work of peacebuilding, in their communities and in political negotiations.
We hold fast to the vision of peace and justice that these feminist leaders have embodied. We cannot bomb our way to peace. End the violence now.