– Abdul Bari Masoud
New Delhi: Five major Left parties issued a joint statement on Sunday, strongly condemning the US bombing of Iran. They called it a “grave violation” of Iran’s sovereignty and international law. The parties warned the attack could lead to a wider regional conflict in West Asia. They said it may also worsen global geopolitics and impact economies, especially India’s. The parties urged the Indian government to drop its “pro-US, pro-Israel” foreign policy.
They called the strike a breach of the UN Charter. The statement criticised the US and Israel for basing their actions on unverified claims about Iran’s nuclear program. Left leaders cited IAEA Director-General Rafael Grossi’s June 19 remark: “We did not have any proof of a systematic effort to move into a nuclear weapon.” They added that even US intelligence had found no conclusive evidence of Iran making nuclear weapons.
The parties said Israel’s June 12 strike aimed to derail possible talks between Tehran and Washington. The US joining the attack, they said, shows that the US-Israel alliance prefers war over diplomacy.
“This clearly shows the US-Israel axis ignores its own intelligence and diplomacy,” the statement said. They accused both countries of trying to impose imperialist control over West Asia. They also blamed them for fuelling the global military-industrial complex.
The Left parties compared the situation to the US invasion of Iraq, which was also based on weak claims. They called it ironic that the only country to use nuclear weapons in war now uses nuclear threats to justify war.
They warned the aggression would hurt global peace and economies. They said India would suffer, as it relies on West Asian oil and migrant workers. “The working masses, already under economic stress, will suffer the most,” the statement added.
They again urged India to drop its “pro-US, pro-Israel” policy. The parties demanded urgent diplomatic steps to stop the war. They also announced nationwide protests. They appealed to all peace-loving people to oppose “this act of imperialist aggression.”
The statement was signed by MA Baby (CPI-M), D Raja (CPI), Dipankar Bhattacharya (CPI-ML Liberation), Manoj Bhattacharya (RSP), and G Devarajan (Forward Bloc).
