"With these resolutions they are going for a blockade of Iranian ships…That can by itself trigger a war," Mohsseini told IOL.

"Right now there are indications that they (the administration) want to start a war with Iran but they have to make the public mind ready for that and set up the background first," American-Iranian Omeid Mohsseini, a key rally speaker, told IslamOnline.net.

"With these new resolutions they are going for a blockade of the Iranian ships and all the trade and everything. That can by itself trigger a war."

Anti-war activists gathered outside Minnesota state congress to urge Senators Amy Klobuchar and Norm Coleman and Congressman Jim Ramstad, co-sponsors of the resolutions currently pending in Congress, to withdraw support.

The Members of the House and Senate have introduced resolutions (H. Con. Res. 362 and S. Res. 580) calling on the administration to impose tougher sanctions on Tehran.

H. Res 362 demands that the President impose "stringent inspection requirements on all persons, vehicles, ships, planes, trains and cargo entering or departing Iran."

Many people believe the naval blockade would be tantamount to an act of war against Tehran.

The rally, organized by the Woman Against Military Madness and a host of local peace groups, was addressed by a distinguished panel of speakers, including several Christian clerics, both men and women.

The son of Congressman Keith Ellison, the first Muslim elected to Congress, read a support statement from his father.

Washington and its allies, chiefly Israel, accuse Iran of attempting to develop nuclear weapons.

Tehran insists that its nuclear program is peaceful and only aims at generating energy for a growing population.

The US has never ruled out a "military action" against Iran, and several reports have talked about a looming strike against Iran from the US and/or Israel.

The New York Times reported that a major Israeli military exercise last June seemed to be a practice for any potential strike against Iran's nuclear facilities.

Not in My Name

"I'm ashamed that people who should know the experience of the Jewish people who have suffered oppression and war speak for further war," Burman told IOL.

Mohsseini says he opposes any military confrontation with Iran as both an Iranian and American.

"First, I'm Iranian and my family, friends and relatives still live in Iran and I care about their safety," he told the anti-war activists.

"Second, I'm American and I'm concerned about the crimes that can be committed in my name as they have already been committed in Iraq, Afghanistan and other places."

Andy Burman, a representative of veterans for peace in Minneapolis, also spoke out against war prospects.

"A war on Iran would be an absolute tragedy for the people of the United States as well as for the people of Iran and would be terribly destabilizing for world peace not only in the Middle East but through out the entire world," he told IOL after his speech.

He accused people in the Congress and the administration of trying to redeem themselves from the Iraq fiasco by pushing for another war with Iran.

"They have been making threats both in the White House and the Congress and we take these threats seriously."

Burman, an American Jew, blasted the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) of leading the Iran warmongering.

"Unfortunately we have in this country a lobby organization called AIPAC which represents the most rightwing sentiments within the American Jewish community," he said.

"It does not represent the overwhelming desire for peace among most American Jews."

The war veteran, who fought in Vietnam and world War, regretted AIPAC's negative influence on US politics.

"Unfortunately they do have influence in Congress. It's absolutely tragic. They are driving resolutions in both the House and Senate that call for naval blockade of Iran," he added.

Congressional insiders credit America's powerful pro-Israel lobby for the rapid endorsement of the bills.

On its website, AIPAC endorses the resolutions as a way to "Stop Iran's Nuclear Proliferation" and tells readers to lobby Congress to pass the bill.

According to a recent poll by the American Jewish Committee, most American Jews do not support any preemptive action against Iran.

"I'm ashamed that people who should know the experience of the Jewish people who have suffered oppression and war speak for further war."