US President Donald Trump has launched an unprovoked military attack on Iran, violating the UN charter and bypassing Congress, just days into his so-called Board of Peace era. The joint operation with Israel aims at regime change, with no legal basis, and was initiated amid ongoing diplomatic talks.
In an eight-minute address after the first strikes, Trump warned Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) to surrender or face destruction. He called on Iranians to rise up against their government, but erroneously included the Akhvakhs—a small ethnic group from Dagestan, not Iran—in his list of oppressed peoples.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu declared his country’s involvement, stating the goal was to remove the “existential threat” from Iran. The maximalist objectives cast doubt on the sincerity of recent US-Iranian negotiations over uranium enrichment, which had taken place under the shadow of a massive US military buildup in the region.
Trump, who campaigned on ending foreign wars and sought a Nobel Peace Prize, launched the attack just ten days after hosting the inaugural Board of Peace meeting. That gathering, attended by 27 mostly autocratic states, was intended to resolve global conflicts but has been criticised as a “bait-and-switch” scam, serving Trump’s political and financial interests rather than genuine peace efforts.
Critics argue that Iran poses less of a threat now than in decades, weakened by previous US-Israeli strikes and internal protests. The Board of Peace, sold to the UN as a path to end the Gaza conflict, has instead become a vehicle for unilateral action, leaving member states complicit in an unwanted war.
