‘No Kings’ Protests Surge: Millions Rally Against Iran War

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The Iran war, aggressive immigration enforcement, and sweeping federal layoffs converge to trigger one of the largest protest waves in recent years.

By TRH World Desk

New Delhi, March 29, 2026 — Millions hit streets in the US and Europe to protest against the Iran War. ‘No Kings’ protest in its first edition this year has gained unprecedented mass participation.

The Iran War has come as the big trigger. Since Donald Trump assumed the US presidency, mass protests have intensified. Here are the issues agitating the people.

The US–Israel War on Iran

The war that now dominates protest placards began on 28 February 2026. On that date, the United States and Israel attacked Iran after weeks of military buildup and threats from President Trump. Large-scale strikes targeted Iranian military assets and the Islamic Republic’s top leadership, killing Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

The surprise attack was launched during nuclear negotiations. It killed Khamenei and other Iranian officials, and subsequent strikes damaged military bases, government facilities, schools, hospitals and cultural heritage sites. Iran retaliated by launching hundreds of drones and ballistic missiles at targets in Israel and at US military bases in Bahrain, Jordan, Kuwait, Qatar and Saudi Arabia.

Strikes on Iran by the US and Israel left more than 82,000 civilian structures damaged or destroyed, according to the Iranian Red Crescent Society. Al Jazeera Trump’s approval rating has reflected the war’s unpopularity: a Reuters/Ipsos poll found it fell to 36 percent, its lowest level since his second term began, attributed to rising living costs and growing disapproval of the conflict.

The war’s roots stretch back years. In 2018, Trump unilaterally withdrew from the 2015 JCPOA nuclear deal. Iran then began stockpiling enriched uranium and largely suspended IAEA monitoring. Indirect negotiations on a new agreement collapsed in February 2026, with Trump saying he was “not thrilled” with the talks, before the joint strikes began days later.

ICE Crackdowns and the Killing of American Citizens

The war abroad has a mirror in the interior. Since January 2025, the Trump administration has pursued what it calls the “largest domestic deportation operation” in US history, carrying out deportation flights, sometimes to third countries where migrants have no existing ties, and ramping up nationwide immigration raids.

The crackdown reached a breaking point in January 2026. Federal agents fatally shot two US citizens — Renee Good and Alex Pretti — in separate incidents in Minneapolis, triggering widespread protests and criticism from members of both political parties. During a surge of thousands of federal agents to Minnesota, ICE officers were seen arresting US citizens and legal immigrants, entering homes without judicial warrants, and using excessive force against observers.

There has been growing scrutiny of deaths in ICE custody: at least six people died in ICE detention facilities in the first weeks of 2026 alone, following a two-decade high of 32 custody deaths in 2025. ICE more than doubled its manpower from 10,000 to 22,000 agents, shortening training from 13 weeks to six weeks and waiving its long-standing age limit.

By January 2026, the number of people ICE alone deported rose to roughly 540,000 since Trump returned to office.

Federal Layoffs and DOGE

The third major grievance is economic. More than 260,000 workers left federal service due to Trump administration initiatives in 2025, according to the Office of Management and Budget, through reductions in force, early retirement, deferred resignations and a hiring freeze.

About 300,000 federal civil service layoffs were announced, almost all attributed to the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), led by tech billionaire Elon Musk, who set a target of $2 trillion in savings. The cuts disproportionately hit the Veterans Affairs department, the Treasury, USAID and the Department of Education. Those who left tended to be longer-term employees — the government saw a 33% net decrease among workers with 30 or more years of experience, amounting to what one expert called “4 million years of experience that walked out the door.”

Indivisible co-founder Ezra Levin, speaking at Saturday’s rally, called for a nationwide economic protest on May 1, urging supporters to skip work, school and shopping, saying: “Your strength and your commitment told us that this is still America, and this reactionary nightmare and these invasions of American cities will not stand.”