As U.S. and allied forces carried out major military strikes in Iran, 26 residents gathered outside the Bandera County Courthouse on Sunday, March 1, to protest President Donald Trump’s decision to authorize the operation without a formal vote in Congress.
In the early hours of Saturday morning, Trump announced what he called “major combat operations” in Iran under the name Operation Epic Fury, confirming multiple missile strikes.
The campaign marked a significant escalation of U.S. military action in the Middle East, including the reported death of Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, according to statements from the U.S. government and international media reports.
Speaking Monday at the White House, Trump said the United States was targeting Iran’s missile capabilities, naval forces and support for militant groups in the region to protect U.S. interests and allies.
“An Iranian regime armed with long-range missiles and nuclear weapons would be an intolerable threat to the Middle East and to the American people,” Trump said, framing the operation as necessary to prevent future attacks.
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, briefing reporters at the Pentagon, echoed that the military campaign was not intended to be open-ended or analogous to prior conflicts such as the Iraq War, even as he stressed that the U.S. would respond forcefully to any threats.
Sunday’s protest in Bandera drew participants from both the Democratic and Republican parties who said they opposed the president’s decision to strike without congressional authorization.
Robert Rios, a local Democratic activist who helped organize the demonstration, said he would not support a war with Iran even if lawmakers had approved it. “We have seen time and time again that we go into the Middle East with no goal and no exit strategy, and the combat goes on and on,” Rios said, citing reports of civilian casualties and U.S. troop deaths as reasons for his opposition.
According to the White House, U.S. missile strikes have resulted in fatalities inside Iran, including civilians, and several American service members have been killed in retaliatory combat.
Rios also criticized what he called inconsistent messaging from the administration on the war’s goals and described the military action as a distraction from other political issues.
Organizers planned Sunday’s protest in roughly 24 hours, Rios said, and expected only about 15 participants. The group remained outside the courthouse for nearly 90 minutes.
“Not all of us were Democrats,” he said, adding that supportive reactions from passing motorists outnumbered negative responses.
The Bandera County Democratic Party plans to participate in another protest in Kerrville on March 28, according to organizers.
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