I am asking that you call for the sanctions against Iran to be lifted for humanitarian reasons and speak out to prevent President Trump from starting a war with Iran in the middle of the COVID-19 pandemic. Now is the time for COVID-19 diplomacy. On Wednesday, April 22, 2020, President Trump tweeted, “I have instructed the United States Navy to shoot down and destroy any and all Iranian gunboats if they harass our ships at sea.” A war in the middle of a pandemic would be disastrous. Thankfully, members of Congress — Senator Chis Murphy, Rep. Ilhan Omar, Rep. Barbara Lee, Rep. Elaine Luria, and Senator Tom Udall — tweeted their outrage and dissent. Rep. Lee wrote: “Back to his old tricks: Trump is trying to start a war with Iran IN THE MIDDLE OF A GLOBAL EMERGENCY. The House already said #NoWarWithIran once – we'll do it again.” Before that Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Ilhan Omar, Jared Huffman, Joaquin Castro and Senators Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren and others had sent a vital letter to the White House calling for the U.S. to ease sanctions and send aid to combat the outbreak of Coronavirus in Iran. Senator Dianne Feinstein had joined the call. AS YOUR CONSTITUENT, I AM ASKING YOU TO JOIN THESE VOICES: CALL FOR THE SANCTIONS ON IRAN TO BE LIFTED SO THE COUNTRY CAN ADDRESS COVID-19 AND BE CLEAR THAT TRUMP MUST NOT START A WAR WITH IRAN, DURING A PANDEMIC OR ANYTIME. According to the War Powers Act, the president may not go to war without approval from Congress — bills reaffirming this have passed through both chambers of Congress. Please prepare statements for when Trump will likely use his veto power to silence this bill voicing the will of the people. The Coronavirus epidemic demonstrates how much our health depends on effective global responses to shared threats. Unfortunately, Iran’s health sector has been decimated by U.S. sanctions, leading to shortages of testing kits, medical devices, and medicine to combat the virus. By the time the coronavirus hit Iran on February 19, the country’s economy had already been devastated by U.S. sanctions. The rial lost 80 percent of its value and the sale of oil dropped from a high of 2.5 million barrels a day in early 2018 to about 250,000 barrels. This left the government with scant resources to cover the enormous costs of dealing with direct medical treatment for patients suffering from the coronavirus, as well as supporting workers who are losing their jobs and helping businesses going bankrupt. Humanitarian aid—food and medicine—was supposed to be exempt from sanctions. But that hasn’t been the case. Shipping and insurance companies have been unwilling to risk doing business with Iran, and banks have not been able or willing to process payments. In October 2019, Human Rights Watch (HRW) released a report citing that “the overbroad and burdensome nature of the US sanctions [on Iran] has led banks and companies around the world to pull back from humanitarian trade with Iran, leaving Iranians who have rare or complicated diseases unable to get the medicine and treatment they require.” On February 27, 2020, the U.S. Treasury Department announced that it would waive sanctions for certain humanitarian supplies to go through Iran’s central bank. But it was far too little, far too late, as COVID-19 had already ravaged Iran. Health, hygiene, and access to medical care are fundamental human rights, regardless of race, religion, and nationality. For the sake of the health and well-being of 80 million Iranians and their neighbors, we call on you to issue statements, resolutions, and/or legislation calling for the U.S. to immediately lift its sanctions on Iran and to express clearly that Trump may not go to war with Iran without congressional approval. Now is the time for COVID-19 diplomacy. Please join your colleagues in speaking out.

I am asking that you call for the sanctions against Iran to be lifted for humanitarian reasons and speak out to prevent President Trump from starting a war with Iran in the middle of the COVID-19 pandemic. Now is the time for COVID-19 diplomacy. On Wednesday, April 22, 2020, President Trump tweeted, “I have instructed the United States Navy to shoot down and destroy any and all Iranian gunboats if they harass our ships at sea.” A war in the middle of a pandemic would be disastrous. Thankfully, members of Congress — Senator Chis Murphy, Rep. Ilhan Omar, Rep. Barbara Lee, Rep. Elaine Luria, and Senator Tom Udall — tweeted their outrage and dissent. Rep. Lee wrote: “Back to his old tricks: Trump is trying to start a war with Iran IN THE MIDDLE OF A GLOBAL EMERGENCY. The House already said #NoWarWithIran once – we'll do it again.” Before that Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, Ilhan Omar, Jared Huffman, Joaquin Castro and Senators Bernie Sanders and Elizabeth Warren and others had sent a vital letter to the White House calling for the U.S. to ease sanctions and send aid to combat the outbreak of Coronavirus in Iran. Senator Diane Feinstein had joined the call. AS YOUR CONSTITUENT, I AM ASKING YOU TO JOIN THESE VOICES: CALL FOR THE SANCTIONS ON IRAN TO BE LIFTED SO THE COUNTRY CAN ADDRESS COVID-19 AND BE CLEAR THAT TRUMP MUST NOT START A WAR WITH IRAN, DURING A PANDEMIC OR ANYTIME. According to the War Powers Act, the president may not go to war without approval from Congress — bills reaffirming this have passed through both chambers of Congress. Please prepare statements for when Trump will likely use his veto power to silence this bill voicing the will of the people. The Coronavirus epidemic demonstrates how much our health depends on effective global responses to shared threats. Unfortunately, Iran’s health sector has been decimated by U.S. sanctions, leading to shortages of testing kits, medical devices, and medicine to combat the virus. By the time the coronavirus hit Iran on February 19, the country’s economy had already been devastated by U.S. sanctions. The rial lost 80 percent of its value and the sale of oil dropped from a high of 2.5 million barrels a day in early 2018 to about 250,000 barrels. This left the government with scant resources to cover the enormous costs of dealing with direct medical treatment for patients suffering from the coronavirus, as well as supporting workers who are losing their jobs and helping businesses going bankrupt. Humanitarian aid—food and medicine—was supposed to be exempt from sanctions. But that hasn’t been the case. Shipping and insurance companies have been unwilling to risk doing business with Iran, and banks have not been able or willing to process payments. In October 2019, Human Rights Watch (HRW) released a report citing that “the overbroad and burdensome nature of the US sanctions [on Iran] has led banks and companies around the world to pull back from humanitarian trade with Iran, leaving Iranians who have rare or complicated diseases unable to get the medicine and treatment they require.” On February 27, 2020, the U.S. Treasury Department announced that it would waive sanctions for certain humanitarian supplies to go through Iran’s central bank. But it was far too little, far too late, as COVID-19 had already ravaged Iran. Health, hygiene, and access to medical care are fundamental human rights, regardless of race, religion, and nationality. For the sake of the health and well-being of 80 million Iranians and their neighbors, we call on you to issue statements, resolutions, and/or legislation calling for the U.S. to immediately lift its sanctions on Iran and to express clearly that Trump may not go to war with Iran without congressional approval. Now is the time for COVID-19 diplomacy. Please join your colleagues in speaking out.