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Angry crowds flood Boston streets demanding end to Iran strikes as Massachusetts delegation calls operation 'unconstitutional' — while Iran fires missiles at US bases and Trump claims regime's Supreme Leader has been killed

Saturday, February 28, 2026•
10 min read
MDN Staff
•
Angry crowds flood Boston streets demanding end to Iran strikes as Massachusetts delegation calls operation 'unconstitutional' — while Iran fires missiles at US bases and Trump claims regime's Supreme Leader has been killed

Protests erupt in downtown Boston within hours of Operation Epic Fury as Pressley accuses Trump of killing children, Markey calls it illegal, and Iran fires hundreds of missiles at US military bases in Bahrain, Kuwait and Qatar — US reports zero casualties

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BOSTON—Protesters took to the streets of Boston on Saturday as the US and Israel launched Operation Epic Fury, a massive military operation targeting Iran's nuclear program, military infrastructure, and regime leadership, while Massachusetts politicians raced to condemn the strikes and Iran fired retaliatory missiles at American military bases in three countries.

The result was a scene that played out simultaneously across three stages: explosions in Tehran, missiles aimed at US troops in Bahrain, Kuwait and Qatar, and angry crowds in downtown Boston. All within hours of each other.

What actually happened in Iran

President Trump announced the launch of "major combat operations" in an 8-minute video posted to Truth Social early Saturday, saying the mission was to destroy Iran's military capabilities and permanently eliminate the threat of a nuclear weapon.

"We've inflicted tremendous damage. It would take them years to rebuild," Trump told NBC News hours into the operation.

The strikes targeted Revolutionary Guard command facilities, air defense systems, missile and drone launch sites, and military airfields. One of the first strikes hit near the offices of 86-year-old Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Trump told NBC he believes Khamenei was killed, saying "we feel that that is a correct story" and that "most" of Iran's senior leadership is "gone."

Iran's Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi told NBC that Khamenei and President Masoud Pezeshkian are alive "as far as I know."

Israel said it had worked with the US for months to plan the operation. The US had assembled a massive fleet including the aircraft carriers USS Abraham Lincoln and USS Gerald R. Ford to pressure Tehran into a deal on its nuclear program. When talks failed, the military option went live.

The US military reported no American casualties and minimal damage to US bases despite "hundreds of Iranian missile and drone attacks," according to NBC Boston.

Iran fires back

Iran's Revolutionary Guard launched counterattacks within hours, firing drones and missiles at Israel and targeting US military installations in Bahrain, Kuwait and Qatar. Israeli military said Iran fired "dozens" of missiles, with many intercepted and no serious injuries. Emergency services reported 89 people with minor injuries.

Iranian state media reported at least 201 people killed and more than 700 injured in the strikes. Iran's state TV reported at least 85 killed when a girls' school in southern Iran was struck, a claim the US military said it was "looking into." Iran is in a near-total internet blackout, according to advocacy group NetBlocks, making independent verification impossible.

Trump urged Iranians to rise up against their government: "When we are finished, take over your government. It will be yours to take. This will be probably your only chance for generations."

Back in Boston

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While missiles were flying in the Middle East, Boston was dealing with its own version of the fallout.

Emergency protests broke out in the city within hours of the strikes being announced. Demonstrators gathered downtown to condemn the operation, with crowds spilling into the streets.

Massachusetts politicians were already ahead of them. The entire delegation had weighed in before most of the protesters had even left their apartments.

The Massachusetts delegation reacts

Congresswoman Ayanna Pressley, who boycotted the State of the Union earlier this month, accused Trump of "illegally bypassing Congress and starting a war with Iran that has already killed dozens of children."

Senator Elizabeth Warren went further than any other member of the delegation, posting multiple times throughout the day. She called the operation "illegal," "dangerous," and "a betrayal of the American people," sharing a video calling it a "forever war built on lies."

In an earlier post, Warren wrote: "'America first' doesn't mean dragging the United States into another forever war built on lies while ignoring the needs of Americans here at home. The Constitution is clear: only Congress" has the authority to declare war.

She also retweeted Congressman Jason Crow, who wrote: "How brave. Donald Trump's not sending his family or the kids of his billionaire donors off to fight. He's sending working class folks off to war."

Governor Healey took a more measured approach, focusing on public safety and assuring residents there are no credible threats to Massachusetts.

Senator Markey called the strikes "illegal and unconstitutional" and pointed to the Obama-era nuclear deal that Trump withdrew from in 2018. Congressman Moulton, a Marine veteran who served four tours in Iraq, drew direct parallels to that war. "Does Congress even have any idea what's really going on or what the strategy is? No, we do not," Moulton told NBC10 Boston. "There's no plan, no strategy. And if you want to know what a debacle looks like, well this may be the debut of a debacle happening right now."

Congresswoman Trahan called it an unconstitutional bypass of Congress.

Congressman Auchincloss called Operation Epic Fury "a war of choice without congressional authorization" and said he would vote yes on the War Powers Resolution next week.

What's at stake

The operation comes at a moment when Iran is arguably at its weakest since the 1979 revolution, but also its most dangerous. Israeli and American strikes last June weakened Iran's air defenses and military leadership. The regime's network of proxies across the Middle East, including Hezbollah, Hamas, and the Houthis, has been significantly degraded. US sanctions have decimated the Iranian economy. And the regime has been struggling with growing internal dissent following nationwide protests.

But Iran has also been racing toward nuclear weapons capability for years, in violation of multiple UN Security Council resolutions. The Obama-era JCPOA deal that Markey referenced placed temporary limits on enrichment but allowed Iran to continue developing centrifuge technology and included sunset clauses that would have eventually lifted all restrictions. After Trump withdrew from the deal in 2018, Iran resumed enrichment and by 2025 had stockpiled enough enriched uranium that US intelligence officials warned a nuclear weapon was within reach.

Iran remains the world's leading state sponsor of terrorism, according to the US State Department. It has supplied weapons to militias targeting American troops in Iraq and Syria, funded Hamas and Hezbollah, armed the Houthis who have disrupted global shipping in the Red Sea, and provided drones to Russia for use in Ukraine.

The UN's nuclear watchdog said it was monitoring developments and had seen "no evidence of radiological impact" from the strikes. The UN Security Council convened an emergency session Saturday afternoon.

Whether Operation Epic Fury ends Iran's nuclear ambitions or opens the door to a wider regional war depends on what comes next. For now, the US military reports zero American casualties. Iran's senior leadership may be dead. And the streets of Boston are full of people who have very strong feelings about all of it.

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