Over the winter break, several UTRGV students watched tensions between the U.S. and Iran rise after the death of Maj. Gen. Qassem Soleimani and a missile strike in Iraq, leaving some worried and frightened.
Gabriel Figueroa, a UTRGV exercise science graduate student, said he is unsettled with the situation.
“There should probably be some de-escalation on both sides because, I mean, if we do go to war with Iran, it’s not just going to be Iran,” Figueroa said. “China and Russia are also involved so nuclear wars, you know, may be imminent if everyone just goes all out.”
Exercise science freshman Michael Leal said the tension between the U.S. and Iran is pointless.
“I don’t think there should be any tension to begin with,” Leal said. “I don’t know why they could never just sit down and just talk peacefully instead of attacking each other.”
Last Tuesday, Iran launched missiles against U.S. military and coalition forces in Iraq in response to the Jan. 2 killing of Soleimani, the head of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps-Quds Force, a U.S.-designated Foreign Terrorist Organization, according to news releases from the U.S. Department of Defense.
“At approximately 5:30 p.m. (EST) on January 7, Iran launched more than a dozen ballistic missiles against U.S. military and coalition forces in Iraq,” a news release from last Tuesday states. “It is clear that these missiles were launched from Iran and targeted at least two Iraqi military bases hosting U.S. military and coalition personnel at Al-Assad and Irbil.”
No casualties were reported and minimal damage was sustained to the military base, President Donald Trump said during a news conference last Wednesday.
“No American or Iraqi lives were lost because of the precautions taken, the dispersal of forces, and an early warning system that worked very well,” Trump said. “I salute the incredible skill and courage of America’s men and women in uniform.”
Nicholas Kiersey, a political science professor at UTRGV, said in an interview last Thursday that the immediate risk of an escalation is over.
Asked if the U.S. and Iran can go to war, Kiersey replied, “Yes, they can. Yes, they absolutely can, but I don’t think any of them want to. If they do go to war, it will be terrible for Iran. The United States will win, but the United States will only defeat Iran at a cost.”
During the news conference, Trump said the U.S. will impose additional punishing economic sanctions on the Iranian regime.
“These powerful sanctions will remain until Iran changes its behavior,” the president said.
Last week, social media users aired concerns or mocked the possibility of a potential draft if the U.S. and Iran went to war.
Kiersey said if Trump were to introduce a draft, he would most likely not be re-elected.
“Of course, there can be a draft, but I mean, anyone who’s introducing
the draft would be committing suicide,” he said.
“I feel [all of this] will settle down in a couple of days,” said Daniel De La Cruz, a criminal justice junior. “I don’t think it’ll escalate into something bigger or World War III like everybody is talking about. I think it’ll just all settle down.”
Editorial Cartoon: Why now?
