Over 180 rallies planned across US to protest Trump’s ‘march to war’ with Iran

A coalition of progressive advocacy groups in the US have called for massive rallies across the country to protest President Donald Trump’s “military brinksmanship” against Iran and demand immediate de-escalation of tensions with Tehran following the US assassination of a top Iranian general.

“We will not be forced into another war,” said the coalition, led by MoveOn, Indivisible, Win Without War, and other groups.

“On Thursday, January 9, at 5 p.m local time, the anti-war majority in this country will get visible to oppose Trump’s war and say #NoWarWithIran,” the coalition said.

As of Wednesday, over 180 protests have been planned across the US, up from just 50 when the protests were first announced Tuesday afternoon.

The protest organizers said we “will demand that Congress intervene to stop Trump from taking the advice of war-hungry right-wing pundits and launching a devastating war with Iran.”

“America, this is an emergency,” said activist Kai Newkirk. “If we spiral into war with Iran, millions could die. We have a short window of time to stop it. We need a massive protest. Everyone, if at all possible, must come out this Thursday, nationwide.”

“We need everyone in the streets,” tweeted US Representative Pramila Jayapal, a Democrat from the state of Washington and co-chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus.

 “This is a critical time for the American people to be heard,” she added.

“This is Trump’s fault. Since being elected, he has escalated, provoked, and threatened Iran. He chose to assassinate one of its political leaders, knowing that Iran would retaliate,” Indivisible, one of the protest organizers, said on its website.

Angel Padilla, the national policy director of Indivisible, said in a statement on Tuesday that the missile attack by Iran was an “entirely predictable” and “avoidable” consequence of the White House’s hawkish policies toward Iran and urged Congress “act decisively and fast to stop Trump’s warmongering.”