Editorial: The cost of intervention is human lives
Welcome back to the good ol' days.
On Feb. 28, 2026, the United States and Israel launched their first coordinated attacks against Iran after weeks of growing tensions, launching a flurry of airstrikes aimed at government and military targets. Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei was among those killed in the initial attacks, and the strikes have not ceased.
In retaliation, Iran has launched strikes of its own, targeting Israel and neighbouring countries that host U.S. military bases. The country has also shuttered the crucial Strait of Hormuz in the Arabian Gulf, which sees a fifth of the world’s traded oil pass through it, and has threatened to expand its attacks in the region.
Many of us have logged onto social media and seen hordes of people, Iranians among them, celebrating the death of Khamenei as a monumental moment for the freedom of the nation. This reaction is understandable—Khamenei’s status as a brutal dictator cannot be understated, and no punishment can undo the atrocities committed under his rule.
But to treat this operation as benevolent, or to assume the U.S. acted in the interest of Iranian citizens, reflects a deeply myopic view of U.S. interventionism.
Does this sound familiar? The Link’s Issue 7 editorial featured a similar condemnation of the U.S.’s imperialistic actions in Venezuela. The editorial was aware of the U.S.'s willingness to continue its intrusions, but we were largely oblivious to its intentions in Iran. And now we find ourselves back in the same place.
It is exceedingly clear that the U.S.’s greedy and egocentric foreign identity knows no bounds. Donald Trump, Pete Hegseth and an administration hellbent on American expansion have orchestrated a costly and destructive war that has already led to the deaths of at least 13 American soldiers and sent the price of oil soaring to over $100 a barrel.
As of March 15, 1,444 people have been killed in Iran, 170 of whom were casualties of a U.S.-Israeli attack on a primary girls' school. At least a dozen civilians, predominantly migrant workers, were killed in the Arabian Gulf states due to Iranian strikes. A related escalation of Israeli attacks on southern Lebanon has led to over 800 deaths and 850,000 people displaced.
Canada’s response has been disheartening and woefully inadequate.
As the war continued, Prime Minister Mark Carney pledged his support for the strikes on Iran “with some regret,” meeting with Qatari Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad al-Thani to discuss resolving the conflict.
Carney also deferred the responsibility for deciding the legality of the U.S. and Israel’s actions, preferring, as usual, to stray away from the difficult questions and offer a safe, comfortable, PR-trained answer.
After conversations with MPs, Carney later changed his tune, affirming that the country would “never participate” in the conflict, albeit maintaining a hostile tone towards Iran. But Carney’s initial statements have done damage already.
The leader of Canada has once again failed to condemn the callous and destructive actions of a country that takes every chance to ridicule and insult Canadian sovereignty. It is insulting to Canadians themselves to see their government hem and haw about its international perception, while one of its supposed allies attempts to wipe its enemies off the map.
Almost 23 years to the day, the U.S. invaded Iraq under fabricated pretenses of Iraq’s production of "weapons of mass destruction." The subsequent conflict led to the deaths of over 300,000 civilians and combatants and eroded trust in the U.S. government both domestically and abroad.
The U.S. has made its intentions clear. It will not stop.
Which side of history will Canada fall on?
The international community must do its part to put pressure on the U.S. and clearly display that its actions will not be tolerated. It is disheartening, and frankly disgusting, that it has not learned its lesson from past conflicts. But it now has another chance to put a stop to this destructive and pointless war.
The Link wholeheartedly condemns the imperialist actions of the U.S. and Israel in its war against Iran, along with the indecisive nature of the nations that refuse to take a stand against tyranny.
This article originally appeared in Volume 46, Issue 11, published March 17, 2026.
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