Local community members organized at Champaign’s West Side Park Saturday afternoon to protest the military operations the United States and Israel conducted against Iran, which killed Iran’s Supreme Leader, Ali Khamenei, earlier that day.
The central Illinois branch of the Party for Socialism and Liberation organized the protest, joined by members of the CU Muslim Action Committee and UC Jews for Ceasefire.
Derek Briles, a PSL organizer, condemned what he called “U.S. interventionism” in Iran.
“This coordinated attack between Israel and the U.S. is against international law and an unprovoked attack on a sovereign nation,” Briles said. “The internal affairs of Iran are not the purview of the U.S. government and it’s not our place to try to institute any sort of regime change.”
The U.S. and Israel, in a joint attack dubbed “Operation Epic Fury,” engaged in a bombing campaign across Iran. Targets reportedly included members of Iran’s leadership, the Revolutionary Guard command facilities and other military targets.
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The attacks also hit a school in Southern Iran, leaving over 150 people dead, according to Iranian officials, BBC reported.
According to the Trump administration, the mission’s purpose was to “eliminate the imminent nuclear threat posed by the Iranian regime.” He also urged Iranians to overthrow the government after the military operation.
Dylan Blaha, University alum and 13-year Army veteran who’s running against Nikki Budzinski (D-Ill.) in the Democratic primary for Illinois’s 13th congressional district attended the protest. He condemned the attack on Iran.
“I oppose the illegal war with Iran,” Blaha said. “It is not okay to attack a sovereign nation. It was illegal under international law and that’s why I’m here to support the organizers that came together today.”
When asked if there was a difference between his position and Rep. Budzinski’s position on Iran, Blaha responded by labeling Budzinski as corporate.
“I haven’t seen her statements today — I assume that she will say something about how we didn’t have congressional approval to do this, which means if they had congressional approval, she would have been okay with it,” Blaha said. “Unfortunately, right now it’s all about oil, it’s all about helping the Epstein class, the billionaire class, and right now, that’s who Nikki supports. That’s who she takes money from.”
Budzinski, in a statement on X, condemned the president for the attack and expressed support for the War Powers Resolution.
“The constitution is clear: only Congress has the power to send our nation to war … Once again, (President Trump) has disregarded the principle of coequal branches of government,” the statement read. “It goes without saying that preventing Iran from becoming a nuclear power is critically important. We had an agreement designed to achieve that goal — an agreement the President chose to abandon.”
In the middle of an eight-minute video statement posted on Truth Social, President Donald Trump seemingly took a minute to directly address the people of Iran.
“Don’t leave your home,” President Trump said. “It’s very dangerous outside. Bombs will be dropping everywhere. When we are finished, take over your government. It will be yours to take. This will be probably your only chance for generations.”
This comes after Iranian protests against worsening living conditions faced an “unprecedented deadly crackdown” from the Iranian government in early 2026. Per Amnesty International, authorities have carried out mass unlawful killings on an unprecedented scale amid the internet blackout, with estimates of the death toll ranging from around 3,000 according to the Iranian government to over 30,000 by outside reporting.
Briles acknowledged the Iranian people’s right to self determination, but condemned American interventionism.
“I fully support the Iranian people to their right to self determination to decide what government is best for them — but that’s not our job,” Briles said. “Are the people of Libya freer now than when the U.S. intervened? No, they have open slave markets. Are the people of Afghanistan more free now after the U.S. intervened? No, they are not.”
An organizer for CU Muslim Action, Dua Aldasouqi, compared yesterday’s attack on Iran to the war on Iraq two decades ago.
“The U.S. war machine invaded Iraq decades ago … with Iran, we see language used to determine, to call the strikes that occurred by Israel and the U.S. as ‘preemptive strikes to eliminate imminent threats,’” Aldasouqi said. “There is no proof besides the words, which is a repeat of what we saw happen in Iraq and ‘weapons of mass destruction.’”
Max, an organizer with UC Jews for Ceasefire and PSL, linked Israel’s attack on Iran with their military operations in Palestine.
“As a member of the Jewish community, it has never been more clear to me that Zionism and the United States are the biggest threats to humanity,” Max said. “For decades, Israel has claimed that the total cleansing and colonization of Palestine will bring us safety … this is one of the reasons that Israel hates Iran so much.”
Max and Briles both condemned American sanctions on Iran.
“The sanctions that the U.S. puts on Iran and the majority of the underdeveloped countries in the world result in 500,000 deaths a year,” Max said, seemingly in reference to a 2025 study published in The Lancet Global Health. The study estimated that unilateral sanctions were associated with an annual toll of 564,258 deaths.
Briles warned to not trust mainstream media coverage of the attacks.
“Make sure to cross-check what you’re seeing,” Briles said. “Don’t just believe what you’re told. The U.S. is doing this because of its own interests, not for the Iranian people. If they wanted to help the Iranian people, they wouldn’t be bombing them and they wouldn’t be starving them with sanctions.”
