Omar and Rashida Tlaib rebuke Trump over Iran action, calling it an ‘illegal regime-change war’

WASHINGTON, DC: The recent US-Israeli military strikes on Iran have drawn sharp criticism from progressive members of Congress, with Reps Ilhan Omar and Rashida Tlaib publicly condemning President Donald Trump’s decision to authorize the operation. 

The lawmakers described the action as unlawful and warned it could escalate instability in the Middle East.

Their statements came as regional tensions surged following reports of retaliatory missile strikes by Iran. Both called for congressional intervention and a renewed focus on diplomacy.

Ilhan Omar calls action an ‘illegal regime change war’

Omar characterized the strikes as unconstitutional and counterproductive, framing them as a move toward regime change rather than a limited security operation.

“Trump has launched an illegal regime change war,” she said in a public statement posted on X.

Drawing on her own lived experience, Omar added, “As someone who has survived the horrors of war, I know military strikes will not make us safer; they will inflame tensions and push the region further into chaos.”

She argued that military escalation risks widening the conflict and undermining long-term stability.

Omar also stressed the importance of diplomacy, stating, “When we abandon diplomacy, we choose destruction.”

Her remarks reflect a broader concern among some lawmakers that the strikes could bypass Congress’s constitutional role in authorizing sustained military engagement.

While the administration has maintained that the action was necessary to counter security threats, and President Donald Trump said that his objective was stability. “All I want is freedom for the people,” he said. “I want a safe nation, and that's what we're going to have.”

Rashida Tlaib says ‘You cannot “free” people by killing them’

Tlaib issued an extensive statement on X, condemning the strikes and disputing the administration’s framing of the operation.

“The American people do not want a war with Iran. Trump is acting on the violent fantasies of the American political elite and the Israeli apartheid government, ignoring the vast majority of Americans who say loud and clear: No More Wars,” she said.

She continued, “The Trump Administration and Israeli regime’s illegal war of aggression on Iran has already killed dozens of children, and more horrific death and destruction will come. These acts of war threaten to ignite a catastrophic regional war that will make no one safer while unleashing unconscionable suffering.”

Tlaib also challenged the argument that the strikes were intended to promote democracy.

“President Trump will pretend this is about democracy and the rights of the Iranian people. Don’t be fooled, Trump does not care about the Iranian people,” she said. “The Iranian people are not pawns for the interests of foreign powers.”

Addressing the broader impact of US policy, she added, “Our government has imposed brutal sanctions that have destroyed the Iranian economy and the lives and livelihoods of millions of people. You cannot ‘free’ people by killing them and destroying their country.” Tlaib concluded by calling for legislative intervention, “Congress must stop the bloodshed by immediately reconvening to exert its war powers and stop this deranged president."