Gavin Montijo ‘26, Sports Editor
With the start of another war in the Middle East, many are confused as to why the United States is at war with Iran. The cause of the war starts with the U.S. and Israel’s being long standing allies and being collectively positioned against the Iranian government that has long been wanting nuclear weapons. Iran’s nuclear program first started with producing peaceful energy, but after the Iranian revolution in 1979 the program was paused then eventually shifted to weaponization in the late 1980s. The U.S. found out about their weapons in 2002 during Iran’s Amad plan that was building up the program even more. This war is a direct follow up to the U.S. and Israeli strike on Iranian nuclear sites in June 2025. The main cause of this war was the Iranian nuclear program that they have been trying to develop despite pushback.
The reason for the uproar against this program is regarding the safety of the Middle East being threatened with nuclear power there. Due to Iran’s resources and having an abundance of uranium and oil, they can easily make these weapons. In a recent video debriefing the Iran war, President Donald Trump said, “And we will ensure that Iran does not obtain a nuclear weapon. It’s a very simple message. They will never have a nuclear weapon.” The Iranian government has long influenced the Middle East with its nuclear capabilities as well as funding multiple terrorist organizations in nearby countries like the Hamas organization in Palestine that have attacked Israel. The U.S. claims they have spent over a billion dollars on sponsoring terrorist organizations, and with the U.S. wanting to eliminate any threat of terroism since 9/11, Iran has become a huge enemy and threat to America.
The region has been heavily influenced by these terrorist groups and the U.S. has wanted to overthrow the Iranian government, even encouraging Iran’s people to do so. Their government has been aggressive to its people and the Middle East in general. Earlier this year, the protests in Iran were violent with the Iranian military using force and weapons against the unarmed crowds, killing thousands. When the leader of Iran was killed by the U.S. and Israeli forces, many Iranian people celebrated as they had been freed from the brutal dictator, but his son, Mojtaba Khamenei, was placed as the new supreme leader. Though nothing is really known about Khamenei, it is speculated that he is harsher and could potentially be a bigger threat than his father. Iran has a long history of human rights violations, specifically targeting women.
Due to the Islamic culture and religion playing a huge role in the government and region, the government enforced heavy rules against them as they have a strict interpretation of Islamic law, Sharia Law. This includes mandating hijabs for all women, as well as restricting freedom of speech, assembly, religion, and public gatherings and protests. Some of these laws are against alcohol, homosexuality, and drugs, and Iran has a harsh legal system in general. Punishment for violation of these rules can often lead to cruel punishments like torture or amputations, and in some cases, the death sentence. The media is heavily censored in Iran, and there are restrictions on what citizens can access on their phones and the news in general. This has made Iran a very controversial country due to its government as many view their actions as human rights violations. This has made Iran a country that the U.S. wants to put in new leadership like they have in the past in Iraq, Afghanistan, and Cuba. This has justified the war to many as the Iranian government is so controlling of its people as seen through its media restrictions, and its own people have wanted the government to be overthrown and have protested countless times to try to make a change.
But the majority view the war as unnecessary as to many, it is just another war in the Middle East and another war Trump has involved the U.S. in after running on a campaign that was against any war. With the current issues in the U.S. revolving around ICE and the rising political tension, many believe this war is unjustified as the government should focus on the bigger problems domestically. The war in Iran has also increased the price of oil and other natural resources that Iran is rich in causing gas prices to increase yet again. But Trump has insisted that this war is necessary in order “for the security of the free world” and will end shortly.
Recently, Trump has threatened to leave NATO due to the lack of support by European allies in the war. Countries have started to push back on the U.S., and France, Spain, Italy, and Switzerland have all closed their airspace to U.S. military planes. Leaving NATO would put the U.S. in a difficult position with their long term allies and create even more pushback from U.S. citizens. With uproar around the world and at home, many see this war as potentially being the last straw for Trump, especially with midterm elections coming up and the growing disapproval of him.
Lyon Life 