By Satyaki Chakraborty
The war in West Asia entered its 14th day on Friday, March 13 expanding the war theatre with neither Iran nor United States showing any indication of relenting for the end of this brutal high tech war. Trump’s determination to bring Iran to the American knees and the new Iranian supremo Mojtaba Khamenei’s declaration that Iran will not allow any single oil carrying ship to pass through Hormuz Straits give all the indications of a prolonged war engulfing most of the Gulf nations.
In such a bitter war environment, the war hysteria has gripped the common people of both Iran and Israel. The hyper nationalism is in full gear. It is extremely difficult for the common people of the war torn countries to talk of peace demanding the end of hostilities. This is especially true for Israel and Iran who has a old history of hostilities.
Even within such extremely adverse political environment, the three communist parties of Israel, Iran and the United States have issued a joint statement condemning the US-Israel military assault on Iran calling it a war of imperialist aggression waged against the interests of working people across the region.
The statement—signed by the Tudeh Party of Iran, the Communist Party of Israel (CPI), and the Communist Party USA (CPUSA) released simultaneously in all three countries as also in other parts of the world is meant to send a signal internationally that the working-class parties from all sides of this active conflict condemn its supposed aims.
The statement pulls no punches in laying blame for the conflict. The three parties describe the war as having been “launched by the criminal Netanyahu government and United States imperialism,” accusing both of dragging “the region and its peoples towards more disasters and civilian casualties—all in the service of imperialist interests, against the interests of peoples, their independence, and their right to self-determination.”
The statement also directly confronts the Trump administration’s stated justification for the assault. The parties characterize the administration’s declared intention to impose “regime change” in Iran as “a gross trampling on the sovereignty and dignity of peoples and a dismantling of international law.” It links the current war to other recent actions by the U.S. “in Latin America,” a reference to the kidnapping of the Venezuelan president and the oil blockade against Cuba.
While condemning U.S.-Israeli war aims and extending solidarity to the people of Iran, the statement is explicit in discouraging illusions concerning the nature of the theocratic Islamic Republic government. Opposing imperialism’s designs in the region, the three organizations argue, does not equate to support for the clerical state.
The parties write that U.S.-Israeli military aggression “not only does not herald Iran’s liberation from the yoke of tyranny and the current dictatorship, but is also an attempt to destroy Iran as a capable regional state, and to replace the current government with a subordinate and authoritarian regime.”
The three parties place the Iran conflict within a longer history of U.S. and Israeli interventions in the region. Citing “the experiences of the peoples in Palestine, Iraq, Libya, Syria, Sudan, Lebanon,” the statement argues that “true liberation and salvation from reactionary and authoritarian regimes can only come with the action of the people and patriotic leadership—not from Washington or Tel Aviv.”
For the Tudeh Party, issuing such a statement carries special weight. Operating largely in exile, Tudeh has long opposed both imperialist interference in Iran and the authoritarian theocracy that rules over its country. The party has faced severe repression, with much of its leadership forced to flee or executed following the 1979 revolution and subsequent crackdowns by the Islamic Republic.
The Communist Party of Israel, an Arab-majority party that has long championed Palestinian rights and opposed militarism from within Israeli society, is also under intense pressure. Particularly since the launch of the genocidal war in Gaza, its members and lawmakers have faced persecution for opposing the Netanyahu government.
For the CPUSA, the statement continues a tradition of opposing U.S. militarism abroad while connecting anti-war politics to the struggles of working people at home. As the Trump administration continues to advance what the party sees as a fascist agenda domestically, it has worked to link up the fight for peace with the battle to protect democracy.
The statement closes with a call for “all forces seeking true liberation from the regimes of exploitation and oppression in each of our countries, as well as the peace-loving and progress-loving forces in the world, to unite their efforts with all their force in these critical and decisive moments in order to struggle against the governments of war and aggression.”
The Communist Party of Israel (Maki), a joint Arab-Jewish party with a Marxist-Leninist foundation, remains a small, marginal political force in Israel. As of early 2026, it maintains an anti-Zionist platform, opposing the current war in Gaza, and is a key component of the Hadash alliance, which acts in opposition to the Israeli government.
Maki operates as a minority party, focusing on anti-war efforts, social justice, and Arab-Jewish, socialist unity. It advocates for an end to Israel’s military control over the West Bank and is ideologically opposed to Zionism. It is the primary, defining component of the Hadash (Democratic Front for Peace and Equality) electoral alliance, which historically gains a small, consistent number of seats in the Knesset. In February 2026, the party held its 29th Congress in Shefa-Amr, where it reaffirmed its commitment to fighting against what it terms “war, racism, and fascism”.
The party faces significant political pressure, with leadership reporting arrests, interrogations, and restrictions on activists and party branches. The current Maki is the successor to Rakah (New Communist List), which split from the original Maki party in 1965. While the party is a persistent, historic fixture on the far-left of Israeli politics, its influence in the Knesset remains limited.
The Tudeh Party of Iran, a Marxist-Leninist organization, was largely destroyed following the 1953 coup against Prime Minister Mosaddegh, transitioning from a significant political force into a weakened, largely exiled group. Despite a brief resurgence in the early 1960s, it remained banned, with its leadership operating from exile, primarily in Eastern Europe.
Formed in 1941, it held major influence during the 1940s and supported the nationalization of the Anglo-Iranian Oil Company. The 1953 coup led to massive arrests of roughly 3,000 militants, including over 500 members in the military. The party, often acting in line with Soviet interests, was driven underground, with its central committee in Moscow and executive committee in East Germany. Further suppression occurred after the 1979 revolution, including mass arrests in 1982 and executions in 1988. The party exists today but remains weak due to its ban within Iran.
As regards the CP of USA, the party is small in strength and its leadership and mass organisations have good understanding with the Left wing among the Democrats. It is easier for the Party to organize protests against US war in collaboration with other anti war campaign bodies. In the coming days, the CP members plan to widen their movement. The CP USA is also focusing on the midterm elections in November this year with the objective of mobilizing all anti Trump citizens in favour of Left and other Democrats. (IPA Service)
