Anti-Iran war rally draws 100+ to downtown Raleigh for a second weekend
AI-generated summary reviewed by our newsroom.
- Over 100 protesters rallied again in Raleigh against the U.S. war in Iran.
- Organizers evoked Vietnam and Iraq-era antiwar movements to pressure U.S. policy.
- Counter-demonstrators thanked the U.S. and Israel and celebrated Khamenei's death.
For the second weekend in a row, over 100 protesters gathered at Moore Square in downtown Raleigh on Saturday to oppose the United States war in Iran.
The U.S. and Israel bombed Iran on the early morning of Feb. 28, The New York Times reported. The strikes killed Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who ruled Iran since 1979. President Donald Trump called for Iranians to take their government over and has signaled he will escalate the war.
The war has already claimed hundreds of lives in Iran — Iranian state media reported that dozens of girls were killed in the southern town of Minab after their elementary school was bombed, The New York Times reported.
And the war may broaden to wider conflicts throughout the Middle East, as dozens were killed in Lebanon after Israeli forces launched airstrikes and clashed with Hezbollah and local fighters, Politico reported.
A Friday PBS News/NPR/Marist poll show a majority of Americans — 56% — oppose the war in Iran. Organizations like the Party for Socialism and Liberation of the Triangle (PSL), CODEPINK and the Palestinian Youth Movement put together another rally and march after a Feb. 28 protest drew over 100 protesters, The News & Observer reported.
Organizers led chants of “Money for the people’s needs, not the U.S. war machine” and “Remember ‘Nam and Iraq? Don’t send our children back” as they marched down Wilmington and Fayetteville streets. Attendees flew Palestinian and Lebanese flags while holding yellow “Hands off Iran!” signs.
PSL organizer Mickey Brigham said activists are taking cues from previous anti-war movements — Vietnam and Iraq — to pressure the U.S. government. Brigham said Americans should oppose taxpayer money being used to “instigate wars that have nothing to do with us halfway across the world” instead of improving living standards at home.
But Brigham also thinks a lot of people will find the war “just wrong.”
“They’re killing hundreds of children at a school that they bombed,” Brigham said. “Anybody can see that that is just wrong. There’s no excuse, there’s no justification for any of this.”
As the protesters marched down Fayetteville Street, a dozen people waved Iranian and U.S. flags at the Wake County Courthouse. They held signs thanking Trump and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and danced to songs celebrating Khamenei’s death.
Jamshaiid Rasouli said he moved from Iran to the U.S. because of the lack of freedom under the Khomenei regime. After the Iranian government’s crackdown on protesters in 2025 resulted in mass killings — according to Amnesty International — Rasouli said he and others wanted help from the rest of the world.
“Today we are here to thank [the U.S. and Israel], to say thank you for your support,” Rasouli said. “Do what you’re doing. We need more to just kick this regime out of our country.”
This story was originally published March 7, 2026 at 6:17 PM with the headline "Anti-Iran war rally draws 100+ to downtown Raleigh for a second weekend."
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