As the days fly by, numerous Americans express concerns, worrying that World War III is starting — some even comparing the Iranian regime to Nazi Germany of World War II, according to CATO Institute — after the United States and Israel attacked Iran on Feb. 28, 2026. This is a result of weeks of military tension and threats from President Donald J. Trump.
To be technical, it is unlikely Congress will formally declare a full-scale war on Iran due to public opposition, increased executive power and a fondness for avoiding blame for conflicts. Given the fact that this is an unofficial war and the legislative branch has not yet acted upon the conflict, it is highly unlikely that this war will become a world war.
The cliche of people declaring that this war will turn into World War III is derived from the fact that many people lack knowledge of world history.
Let’s start at the root, where, in 1979, the Iranian Revolution took place, which, according to Britannica, “involved the participation of a wide range of Iranians—from the secular left to the religious right—who sought an end to the shah’s autocracy and Western interference in the country’s policies.” The Iranians rebelled against Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, who maintained cordial relations with the Western Hemisphere, because he pushed for an authoritarian government that limited their political and religious freedom and perpetuated economic inequality. After the Shah left Iran, revolutionary and religious groups took control of the government, electing symbolic protest leader Ayatollah Khomeini as the supreme leader. Because of this revolution, the country became strongly anti-Western and hostile to the United States, causing many conflicts like the Hostage Crisis of 1979 when Iranian students seized the U.S. embassy in Tehran and held 52 Americans hostage for 444 days. This ultimately led to over 40 years of irregular conflicts with low intensity, distinguished by proxy wars and naval skirmishes.
This war could likely be like one of the many proxy wars that have occurred throughout the years, unless Trump’s famous saying from PBS News, “Iran can never have a nuclear weapon,” proves false. An incident like this “proxy war” occurred in 2003 when U.S. Allies invaded Iraq because of the country’s alleged possession of nuclear weapons. According to BBC, “U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell told the U.N. in 2003 that Iraq had ‘mobile labs’ for producing biological weapons.” Due to these allegations, US President George W. Bush declared a war against the regime of Saddam Hussein, which lasted from 2003 to 2011. Over 4,400 Americans and about 100,000 Iraqis were killed in the war.
After the invasion, it was revealed that there were no inventories of weapons of mass destruction in Iraq and that according to National Archives, “the United State’s government’s allegations thereof had been based on unreliable or misinterpreted intelligence.” When looking at the number of lives lost in this unwarranted war, many assert that there is very little reason to start a war unless a country or innocent people within it is truly under attack. Because of this past instance, people today believe President Trump is only going into Iran to obtain resources like oil.
The fact is that this presidential declaration of war is not random; the U.S. has constantly been fighting with Iran.
Many may also forget how huge the United States army is, with over 1.3 million active personnel compared to Iran’s 610,000. The U.S. also operates 11 aircraft carriers, over 13,000 aircraft and 4666 tanks against Iran’s zero carriers, 551 aircraft and 2,675 tanks.Even with all of the United States’ advantages over Iran in mind, the fact still remains that war is extremely horrifying, and death is the same. This war still poses a threat to both sides — with, according to Al Jazeera, “about 140 US service members, as of Mar. 11, having been wounded and seven killed since the launch of Operation Epic Fury,” —which is hoped to de-escalate. In no circumstance should lives be lost because of an allegation.
