Al-Awda, the Palestine Right to Return Coalition, denounces the U.S.-Israeli joint aggression against the Islamic Republic of Iran. This is a criminal and illegal attack that is a continuation of the ongoing genocide against our Palestinian people in the Gaza Strip and throughout occupied Palestine. We urge all of our members, chapters and supporters to take to the streets immediately against this attack, to stand with the people and the nation of Iran as it defends itself against a brutal imperialist and Zionist assault, and to mobilize consistently to confront the war machine. 

We are outraged that the people of the United States are once again funding another illegal war to advance imperialist and Zionist domination of the Arab world and West Asia as a whole, despite the overwhelming majority opposition – across all parties – to such an assault. One of the primary reasons Iran is currently being targeted is because it stands, clearly and consistently, with the Palestinian people and their rights throughout our homeland. Iran is also being targeted because it remains a nation in West Asia that rejects U.S. domination and control, militarily, economically and politically, and because it refuses subjugation to the doctrine of “Israeli” military supremacy. 

Once again, U.S. and Israeli aggression has been launched under the cover of negotiations that functioned as little more than a smokescreen to neutralize public opposition. It is increasingly clear that these powers were never pursuing peace or agreement, but only seeking a pretext for war while preparing attacks on Tehran, Qom, Kermanshah, Karaj and beyond. This strategy of feigned diplomacy masking military escalation mirrors the same approach used in Gaza, where rhetoric of “peace” and “stabilization” has served as cover for genocide, and the sham “Board of Peace” schemes to advance U.S. and Israeli interests, while completely violating all provisions of the ceasefire.

Iran has the right to defend itself against this aggression — unleashed by the only state to have used nuclear weapons in war and by a nuclear-armed settler-colonial regime that operates outside all international accountability. The United States and Israel are not only attacking Iran; they are simultaneously continuing genocidal war on Palestine and expanding military aggression across Lebanon, Syria, Iraq and Yemen. In this context, Iran’s right to self-defense is inseparable from the broader right of the peoples of the region to resist domination and destruction. With international institutions either silent or complicit — from the paralysis of the United Nations to the politicization of international monitoring bodies — the peoples of the region are left without meaningful protection under international law.

This escalation follows years of sustained aggression against Iran, including sabotage operations, cyberwarfare, assassinations and more than four decades of suffocating sanctions designed to weaken its economy and sovereignty. The U.S. and “Israel” openly promote the restoration of the monarchy in Iran, in an attempt to carry out a regime change to install those who will serve only their interests.

Across the United States, people have made clear that they do not want to be part of what they see as a “war for Israel.” Communities are watching their schools, healthcare systems and infrastructure defunded while billions are poured into militarism and occupation. The U.S. military footprint across West Asia — including its vast network of bases — is being used to threaten a wider regional war with catastrophic consequences. We reiterate our call for the dismantling of U.S. military bases across the region and worldwide. These are not instruments of security but engines of war and instability.

For Palestinians in exile and across the diaspora, this escalation underscores a central truth: the same imperialist system that denies our people the right of return fuels wars across our region. The struggle for Palestine is inseparable from the struggle against imperialism, militarism and colonial domination everywhere.

We urge all supporters of Palestine and justice to mobilize immediately: take to the streets, organize emergency protests, disrupt the war machine, and build sustained grassroots resistance. Join the emergency actions taking place today, Saturday, February 28, and in the days ahead. Mobilize for Al-Quds Day on March 13 in defense of Iran and Palestine and in solidarity with all peoples resisting imperialist aggression.

End the aggression. End the genocide. Dismantle the war machine.

From the river to the sea, Palestine will be free.

View the list of protests organized by the ANSWER Coalition: https://answercoalition.org/iran

Initial list below:

Initial listing of Saturday actions

Akron, Ohio
Pack Square
5pm

Aliso Viejo, CA
Aliso Creek Road and Enterprise
11am

Anchorage, AK
MLK Memorial (L St. and 10th Ave)
6pm

Athens, GA
The Arch
5pm

Atlanta, GA
190 Marietta St NW
3pm

Asheville, North Carolina
Pack Square
5pm

Baltimore, MD
Baltimore City Hall – 100 Holliday St
6pm

Bangor, Maine
Peirce Park
2pm

Bend, Oregon
Peace Corner Bend
2:30 p.m.

Boise, ID
Boise City Hall
6:30pm

Boston, MA
Park Street Station
1pm

Burlington, VT
Burlington City Hall
4pm

Canandaigua, NY
US-20 & S Main St.
3:00 p.m.

Charlotte, NC 
Romare Bearden
4pm

Champaign-Urbana, IL
Cincinnati City Hall – 801 Plum St
4pm

Chicago, IL
Federal Plaza
5pm

Cincinnati, OH
Cincinnati City Hall – 801 Plum St
5pm

Cleveland, OH
Market Square (w. 25th st.)
2:30 pm

Columbus, OH
Goodale Park
4:00 pm

Columbia, South Carolina
SC State House (1100 Gervais St.)
3:00 pm

Davis, CA
Davis Farmer’s Market (Central Park)
10:00 am

Dayton, OH
Dayton Courthouse Square
3:30 p.m.

Decorah, IA
Water Street Bridge
12:00 pm

Denver, CO
Colorado State Capitol
3:00 pm

Des Moines, IA
Neal Smith Federal Building (210 Walnut St)
4:00 pm

Duluth, MN
Lake and Superior Street
5:00 pm

Frisco, CO
Triangle Park
11:00 am

Harrisburg, PA
Capitol Steps
2:00 pm

Holyoke, MA
Holyoke City Hall
3:00 pm

Houston, TX
Post Oak & Westheimer
5:00 pm

Kansas City, Missouri
5 W 3rd Street (City Market Park)
4:00 pm

Indianapolis, Indiana
Military Park
5:30 pm

Las Vegas, NV
Federal Building
6pm

Long Island, NY
Nassau County Legislature (1550 Franklin Ave, Mineola)
2pm

Los Angeles, CA
City Hall
2pm

Lowell, MA
Lowell City Hall
12pm

Madison, WI
Forward Statue, State Capitol
3pm

Manchester, NH
1 City Hall Plaza, Manchester NH
3pm

Miami, FL
Torch of Friendship, 301 Biscayne Blvd
2pm

Milwaukee, WI
Cathedral Square Park (520 E Wells St)
3pm

Nashville, TN
Centennial Park
2pm

New Haven, CT
New Haven Green – Church St and Chapel St
3pm

New Orleans, LA
550 Poydras St.
4pm

New York, NY
Times Square
2pm

Northampton, MA
Intersection of Main & King
12pm

Norwalk, CT
East Avenue, I-95 Bridge off Exit 16
1pm

Pensacola, FL
Palafox & Garden Street
4pm

Phoenix, AZ
Wesley Bolin Plaza (1700 W Washington St)
5pm

Phoenixville, PA
Bridge St & Main St
4pm

Pittsburgh, PA
Schenley Plaza
6:00 pm

Providence, RI
1 Exchange Terrace
2:30 pm

Raleigh, NC
Moore Square
4:00 pm

Richmond, VA
Maggie Walker Plaza
2:00 pm

Sacramento, CA
16th & J St
1:00 pm

Saint Louis, Missouri
Koplar Fountains
12:00 pm

Saint Petersburg, FL
Williams Park
5:00 pm

San Antonio, TX
San Antonio City Hall
5:00 p.m.

San Diego, CA
Memorial Park, 2975 Ocean View Blvd
3:00 p.m.

San Francisco, CA
Federal Building (90 7th St.)
3pm

Spokane, WA
B.A. Clark Park
2pm

Tucson, AZ
Golf Links Rd/Craycroft Rd
5pm

Ventura, CA
Ventura County Government Center (Victoria & Telephone)
3pm

Washington, D.C.
White House
2pm

Worcester, MA
Worcester City Hall
2pm

 

Sunday actions

Albany, NY
Townsend Park
3:30 pm

Chattanooga, TN
Miller Park
5pm

Eugene, OR
Wayne Morse Federal Courthouse, 405 E 8th Ave
11:00 AM

Gainesville, FL
Corner of 13th and University
2:00 PM