Antiwar groups held rallies on Saturday in about 80 cities across the United States protesting a possible strike on Iran. The slogan of the day was “No war, no sanctions, no assassinations, and no intervention.” Iranian-American activist Ali Reza took part in the protest in Los Angeles.

Ali Reza: “In my opinion, America has one and only one goal in that region: to control the, basically, oil of the region, to put—to control—even by extension, to control China and India as two great emerging power. So therefore, I think this particular scenario, political scenario, whether be it sanction and be it war, is exactly for the same reason.” (Video courtesy of Global Voices for Justice)

Columbia University Professor Hamid Dabashi took part in the New York rally at Times Square.

Hamid Dabashi: “We are here today to protest against the possibility of war, yet another war in the Middle East, this time against Iran. When I say 'possibility,' there are many reasons to believe the war has already started. There are severe, crippling economic sanctions imposed on Iran, for which ordinary Iranians are suffering. It is now February, reminiscent of February 2003, when hundreds of thousands of New Yorkers were out demonstrating against the war in Iraq, and yet again, we are, almost 10 years later, fearful for a war in Iran. We are here asking for peace—namely, no war; justice, namely, in Iran; and democracy for Iran.”