Washington, DC — : The America’s largest Muslim civil rights group has sharply criticized the U.S. airstrikes on Iran, labeling them an “illegal and unjustified act of war” that risks escalating the conflict in the Middle East and prioritizing Israeli interests over American lives.
The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) issued a forceful statement on Saturday, following President Donald Trump’s decision to authorize military action targeting three of Iran’s nuclear facilities.
“We condemn President Trump’s illegal and unjustified act of war against Iran,” said CAIR Executive Director Nihad Awad. “This attack, carried out under pressure from the out-of-control Israeli government, took place despite the longstanding conclusion by our nation’s intelligence community that Iran was not seeking nuclear weapons.”
We condemn President Trump's illegal and unjustified act of war against Iran, which prioritizes the wishes of Benjamin Netanyahu over the American people and threatens to drag our nation into a wider war in the region.
This attack, carried out under pressure from the…
— CAIR National (@CAIRNational) June 22, 2025
Awad linked the strike to broader political agendas and drew parallels to the U.S. invasion of Iraq in 2003. “Just as President Bush started a disastrous war in Iraq pushed by war hawks, neoconservatives, and Israeli leaders like Netanyahu, President Trump has attacked Iran based on the same type of false information,” he added.
The remarks come amid growing backlash from advocacy groups and lawmakers over the administration’s sudden military engagement with Iran, which followed days of intensified conflict between Tehran and Tel Aviv.
CAIR’s response underscores a rising wave of domestic criticism as the U.S. military presence in the Persian Gulf region surges and international tension continues to mount.
