Oregon leaders denounce Trump administration’s strikes on Iran; as of Sunday 3 US service members have been killed in action
WASHINGTON D.C. (CNN) (KTVZ) -- Oregon’s elected officials are voicing alarm and condemnation after the Trump Administration confirmed the United States joined Israel in launching coordinated missile strikes on Iran — an operation that U.S. officials say was designed to cripple Iran’s nuclear program and bring down the regime in Tehran.
Iran has retaliated with a wave of missile attacks targeting U.S. military facilities in nearby Middle Eastern countries. American civilians and military personnel in the region are being told to shelter in place as violence intensifies. Iranian state media reports more than 200 people were killed Saturday, with hundreds more injured after smoke filled the skies over Tehran.
U.S. Central Command confirmed three U.S. service members have been killed in action as part of the operation, and five others are “seriously wounded.” Officials say the death toll could rise as fighting continues across multiple fronts. CNN reports the Pentagon is monitoring developments closely and arranging medical evacuations.
President Donald Trump said the strikes succeeded in killing Iran’s Supreme Leader, calling the move “a necessary step to protect the world from a nuclear-armed dictatorship.” Israeli Ambassador to the United Nations Danny Danon defended the attack, saying, “Some call it aggression. We call it necessity. We call it survival.”
In response, protests and celebrations erupted across the globe — anti-war demonstrators packing Times Square in New York, while crowds of Iranian Americans rallied in Los Angeles, many cheering the news of the Supreme Leader’s death. “We want democracy,” said Los Angeles resident Mike Kazerouni. “The end of terrorism — and we want the world to pay attention and be with us.”
The international reaction has been divided. Canada’s prime minister voiced support for Washington and Tel Aviv, calling Iran “the principal source of instability and terror throughout the Middle East.” But leaders in France and the European Union described the attack as “dangerous for all” and vowed to review regional security measures in an emergency meeting next week.
In Oregon, Democratic lawmakers expressed deep concern about what they described as a recklessly unilateral act of war.
“Donald Trump is not a king. These strikes are wrong and unauthorized,” U.S. Sen. Jeff Merkley said in a statement to KTVZ.
Sen. Ron Wyden echoed that sentiment, telling KTVZ, “Donald Trump is unilaterally dragging us into another costly and deadly war in the Middle East that the American people don’t want.”
Congresswoman Janelle Bynum also condemned the strikes but acknowledged Iran’s role in destabilizing the region. “There’s no confusion that Iran’s regime is a bad actor in the Middle East, sponsoring terror against the U.S. and repressing their own people,” she said. “But the answer is not another endless war.”
Lawmakers from both parties in Washington, D.C., are calling for a War Powers vote and a full congressional briefing on the attack and its legal justification.
KTVZ has reached out to Republican U.S. Rep. Cliff Bentz for comment. His office said they will share a statement if and when he is ready to respond.
