Revealed: Dark cash leftist teams sponsoring anti-war protests throughout US, as plot in 60 cities this weekend is uncovered

Progressive activists with a history of cozying up to Iran‘s clerical leadership are behind the mass protests across the US this Saturday opposing the war on Iran, the Daily Mail can reveal.

Organizers say they hope to draw millions onto the streets of New York City, Los Angeles and some 60 other cities to oppose the joint US-Israeli air campaign that has rocked Tehran and killed Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei along with other senior regime figures. 

Promotional materials for the rallies have flooded social media in recent days, focusing on rising civilian casualties inside Iran. Flyers and social media posts cite reported strikes on a girls’ elementary school in southern Iran and describe widespread disruption amid President Donald Trump‘s ‘Operation Epic Fury.’

The protests are being coordinated by a coalition of progressive organizations that have long opposed US military interventions overseas.

However, two of the leading groups have faced sustained criticism from lawmakers and policy analysts over what critics describe as sympathetic positions toward Iran’s ruling establishment.

One of the main organizers is the National Iranian-American Council (NIAC). The Washington-based nonprofit says it advocates for the civil rights and interests of Iranian-Americans and promotes diplomacy between Washington and Tehran.

But critics, including some Republican members of Congress, have alleged that NIAC operates as an undeclared lobby for the Islamic Republic – a claim that the group has repeatedly denied.

NIAC’s co-founder, Trita Parsi, traveled frequently to Tehran in past years and held meetings with senior Iranian officials, including then-Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif. 

Reporting by news outlets Semafor and Iran International, along with information shared by Swedish authorities, has documented links between Parsi and the Iran Experts Initiative, a network of advocates created by Iran’s foreign ministry.

Republican Senators Tom Cotton, Ted Cruz and Mike Braun in 2020 urged the Department of Justice to investigate NIAC for potential violations of the Foreign Agents Registration Act, leading to stricter enforcement of the law.

Parsi has said he is not a spokesman for Iran, and that his meetings and trips are part of his outreach work. 

A widely-shared photo of Parsi among an Iranian delegation to nuclear talks in Switzerland in 2015 has never been debunked, and Parsi has acknowledged taking part in the talks.

Parsi left the organization in 2018 and was succeeded by Jamal Abdi as president, who has likewise faced criticism for whitewashing a repressive regime.

An NIAC spokeswoman said the group rejects ‘false accusations.’

‘Efforts to silence Americans exercising their constitutional right to protest for peace are nothing new and we’re not surprised the people who pushed for this horrific war are now amplifying their smears against the majority of Americans who oppose it,’ she said in a statement.

‘We completely reject false accusations aimed at distracting the public from the disastrous mistake of this war and invite everyone who seeks peace and human rights to join us.’

Another key organizer is Code Pink, the feminist anti-war collective co-founded by activist Medea Benjamin.

Despite Iran’s repression of women, Benjamin has made several trips to Iran and met Zarif in Tehran in 2019.

She also attended a 2014 conference in Tehran that included Holocaust deniers and other controversial participants.

Benjamin has described her visits as peace missions aimed at easing tensions and highlighting the impact of sanctions on ordinary Iranians.

Some progressive activists have criticized her for appearing alongside Iranian officials at public events.

Code Pink has also faced scrutiny over financial support from Neville Roy Singham, a Shanghai-based American businessman married to Code Pink co-founder Jodie Evans.

Since around 2017, Singham has quietly financed the group, a New York Times investigation revealed.

A February 2026 State Department report linked Code Pink and other groups to Chinese malign influence operations. Singham did not respond to requests for comment.

Other groups helping organize Saturday’s demonstrations include the ANSWER Coalition, the Palestinian Youth Movement and the Democratic Socialists of America.

These groups have consistently opposed US military interventions in the Middle East and have staged protests during previous conflicts.

Jason Brodsky, policy director at United Against Nuclear Iran and a former White House policy fellow in the Obama administration, said the protests align with what he described as Tehran’s broader strategy.

‘The Iranian regime is banking on political pressure to mount on President Trump to cut this campaign short,’ Brodsky told the Daily Mail.

‘They view it as asymmetric endurance.’

Brodsky said Iran’s leadership believes it can outlast military pressure by generating political, economic and social strain inside the US.

He argued that if a conflict drags on, public opposition and sustained protest movements could pressure the White House to reduce or halt operations.

He added that policymakers should scrutinize what he called ‘an unchecked Iranian regime influence operation in the US.’

The rallies come more than a week after the US and Israel launched coordinated strikes on Iranian military and nuclear facilities on February 28.

The campaign targeted ballistic missile sites, naval assets and senior regime leadership. Iran has responded with missile attacks across the region.

Trump has said the operations could last more than a month and are aimed at eliminating Iran’s nuclear and ballistic missile programs, destroying its navy and encouraging regime change by empowering the Iranian public.

Critics argue the war lacks congressional authorization and violates international law.

They say the conflict risks expanding into a wider regional confrontation and has already sparked an energy crisis. It has reportedly claimed more than 1,000 lives. 

Critics range from such leftist politicians as Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Bernie Sanders to Republican congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene, who calls it a betrayal of the MAGA promise to end America’s foreign wars.

A CNN poll found that 59 percent of Americans disapprove of the strikes.

Seth Frantzman, a fellow at the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, offered a more cautious assessment of the protests’ potential impact.

‘This kind of network of people… critical of US policy toward Iran, is a well-known group,’ Frantzman said.

‘It’s not surprising that they would be against the US-Israel attacks on Iran.’

Frantzman said polling indicates that while many Americans are uneasy about the war, Iran’s efforts to shape public opinion in the US have had limited success.

‘This protest could be a nothing burger and nobody shows up,’ he said.

‘The Iranian regime has much less influence in the West than it did a decade ago.’

The war marks a dramatic escalation in hostilities between Washington and Tehran, adversaries since the 1979 Islamic Revolution brought Iran’s clerical leadership to power.

As organizers prepare for large-scale demonstrations, officials are monitoring turnout and messaging.

Supporters of the rallies say they are exercising their constitutional right to oppose a war they view as unjust and dangerous – and draw a distinction between opposing the war and supporting the clerics.

Critics argue that some of the leading groups have a record of engagement with Iranian officials that warrants closer examination.

Saturday’s protests are expected to test both the depth of public opposition to the conflict and the ability of activist networks to mobilize on a national scale as the war enters its second week.