As President Donald Trump's threat to destroy Iran gave way to a ceasefire Tuesday, Chicagoans with ties to the country said they felt little relief. Earlier Trump's words drew criticism from Republicans and Democrats, including Gov. JB Pritzker, who called for the president's ouster under the 25th Amendment.
Trump had threatened that a "whole civilization will die tonight," if Iran failed to reach a deal that included reopening the Strait of Hormuz. The two countries reached a ceasefire agreement about 90 minutes before the deadline.
Many details about Tuesday's ceasefire remain unclear, though it was supposed to open the crucial waterway where about a fifth of the world's oil is transported under Iranian supervision. Mehrnoush Soroush, a University of Chicago professor from Iran, has gotten used to Trump walking back threats to her home country. Still, those threats are their own form of violence, she said.
"It's psychological warfare because you're doing this to millions of people worldwide, it's not just Iranians," said Soroush, whose research focuses on anthropology in the region. "Everywhere in the Middle East they're all freaking out ... it's part of the war scene."
Mehrnoush Soroush, a University of Chicago professor, has gotten used to President Trump walking back threats against her home country of Iran. Still, the threats of a form of violence, she says.
Manuel Martinez/WBEZ
Just before Trump's self-imposed deadline, Negar Zadh gathered with a handful of protesters in the Loop to decry the war in Iran. The 32-year-old Chicago resident left Iran about a decade ago, and she hasn't been able to speak to her father in three weeks.
“As an Iranian, I consider myself privileged if the only suffering of this war for me is gas prices going up or not being able to focus at work,” Zadh said. “I don’t know if my loved ones are alive. I have not lived a normal life in months. … I’m functioning as a paralyzed person.”
Pritzker, U.S. Rep. Marjo
