The University of Maryland Middle Eastern studies department is abuzz with questions surrounding the US military’s recent missile strikes in Iran. “Is this legal?” “What does the US hope to achieve?” and “What’s for lunch today?” were just a few of the questions our Hare reporter overheard while preparing to interview staff and students. Most pressing of all: “Hasn’t this happened before?”

We met with the leader of a student research team trying to answer these very questions. In their office was a corkboard with images and newspapers pinned to it, connected by red string. “We’re close to cracking this case, I can feel it,” they said coolly, smoking a cigarette while reclining in their chair. Behind them hung the headlines “CIA overthrows Iranian government; Shah returns to power”, “United States invades Iraq, finds zero weapons of mass destruction”, and “U.S. backs genocide in Gaza.” Our reporter asked the team, “Isn’t it just the same thing happening all over again?”, to which they were promptly asked to leave for not considering the subtleties and nuances of each situation.

The next person we spoke to about the recent events was a history professor, Brad Memory. “You know, I’m getting some crazy deja vu right now. Is it just me?” he said. “I just can’t put my finger on it, but something about the attacks on Iran feel really familiar.” Our interview was interrupted by the sound of military aircraft flying eastbound over College Park, and abruptly ended when Prof. Memory had to go teach his class: “U.S. Imperialism After The Cold War”.

The Accessibility & Disability Service office at UMD has also felt a disruption, as the self-reported rates of disability amongst students have skyrocketed in the last week. Our reporter visited the office and attempted to speak to a student waiting for an appointment. “Am I being drafted? I can’t go, I have stress-induced narcolepsy!” they exclaimed. When we attempted to explain that we were searching for a comment, they promptly fell asleep in their chair.

It is clear that the conflict in Iran has raised many questions, most of which will go unanswered. We are currently waiting to hear back from our in-the-field reporter, but unfortunately, SGA budget cuts have led to us scaling back The Hare’s presence in Iran.

Image Credits: Ollie Garky