Washington, DC – President Trump’s illegal Iran war produced yet another tragedy last night as the U.S. bombed a wedding party in Kuhestak, Hormozgan province, killing four including two children and wounding dozens more. As the consequences of this war mount and legislation from Congress requiring the President to end the war continues to be ignored, National Iranian American Council Action calls on lawmakers in Congress to escalate efforts to enforce the law and end this disaster. “We are in a Constitutional crisis and our lawmakers cannot simply roll over or bide their time as Trump traps the country in an illegal forever war,” said NIAC Action Executive Director Jamal Abdi. “For the first time in U.S. history, Congress has passed legislation mandating the President withdraw from the war, and now they must take him to court to enforce it.” On June 3, the House of Representatives passed a resolution directing the President to terminate unauthorized hostilities against Iran (H.Con.Res.86) by a vote of 215 -208, and the Senate followed suit on June 23 by passing the same resolution 50-48. Even without this unprecedented action, under U.S. law the President can only enter the military into hostilities without a declaration

WASHINGTON, DC – Following reports that the suspension of sanctions exemptions as part of  “Economic D-Day” is now blocking Iranians from taking required global educational tests – including the TOEFL, GRE and Duolingo English Test – the National Iranian American Council urgently called on the Trump administration toreverse its suspension of humanitarian, educational and cultural sanctions exemptions targeting Iranians and Iranian Americans. “There is no world in which the U.S. preventing young Iranians from taking English proficiency tests leads to the opening of the Strait of Hormuz and yet that appears to be the rationale for this cruel new policy,” said NIAC President Jamal Abdi. “The Trump administration would be wise to bolster the limited educational, humanitarian and cultural channels that exist between ordinary Iranians and the United States, rather than send a message that the U.S. is at war with the Iranian people.” Educational Testing Service (ETS), which administers the TOEFL and GRE exams, has suspended testing in Iran, and the Duolingo English Test has also now been made unavailable in Iran and potentially for users with Iranian IDs. NIAC warned at the outset of “Economic D-Day” that the policy explicitly targeted important humanitarian, cultural, and academic activities that would

Washington, DC – Yesterday the Trump Administration announced an “Economic D-Day” that would target “the Islamic Republic of Iran and its enablers.” Yet the first actions they have taken under this campaign are aimed squarely at ordinary Iranians and at severing personal, familial, academic, and cultural relationships between Americans and Iranians. The Administration has suspended key humanitarian exemptions from existing sanctions on Iran designed to allow Iranian Americans to send personal remittances to family in Iran, to allow universities to enroll or offer scholarships to Iranian students, and to allow for sports exchanges involving American and Iranian athletes. These include: 31 CFR § 560.544: Allowing universities to recruit, enroll, and educate students who are ordinarily resident in Iran, and offer them scholarships; 31 CFR § 560.550: Allowing Americans to send personal, non-commercial remittances to non-sanctioned persons in Iran. 31 CFR § 560.554 and Iran General License G: Allowing academic and educational exchanges between the U.S. and Iran. Iran General License F: Allowing for friendly matches and other sports exchanges involving the U.S. and Iran. For years, as U.S. sanctions on Iran have escalated, policymakers have claimed they are aimed at the Iranian government rather than ordinary people. These carveouts that