Two weeks after the U.S. and Israel launched military strikes on Iran in mid-March 2026, a rumor began circulating online that U.S. soldiers were "openly" refusing to fight in the war via videos posted on social media.
Several posts on Facebook made this claim, with some saying that videos showed soldiers on military bases in the U.S. and abroad saying they did not want to fight a war in Iran, citing "no imminent threat to the homeland" (archived):
One Facebook post read, in part:
In an unprecedented act of defiance, active-duty U.S. Army soldiers at multiple bases across the United States and overseas have begun openly refusing orders to deploy to the escalating war against Iran, publicly denouncing the conflict as "illegal" and "unconstitutional" and declaring they will not participate in what they call "an illegal war of aggression."
Videos and statements circulating from Fort Bragg (now Fort Liberty), Fort Hood, Fort Campbell, and several overseas posts show soldiers in uniform stating variations of:
"This is not a defensive war. There is no imminent threat to the homeland. Congress never declared war. We will not deploy to kill and die for oil, politics, or foreign lobbies. We swore an oath to the Constitution — not to endless wars."
Multiple Snopes readers also emailed us and searched our website to confirm whether the rumor was true.
Rumors that service members were openly refusing deployment orders to Iran remain unverified. Contrary to online claims, internet searches and reviews of social media content turned up no reputable evidence — video or otherwise — of active-duty or reserve service members rejecting official orders. Because of this, we've left this claim unrated.
Rather, the Center on Conscience & War, an organization dedicated to supporting conscientious objectors to war in the U.S., reported that more military service members were seeking to conscientiously object to the war against Iran. While this pointed to growing dissent over the war, it didn't prove that any service members were refusing official deployment orders.
Conscientious objectors are service members or drafted civilians who claim the right to refuse to perform military duties because their beliefs do not allow them to do so. It is legal for existing service members to conscientiously object to fighting a war based on freedom of conscience, whether or not their reasons are religious.
Conscientious objectors must register and explain their decision in writing,
More US troops seeking to conscientiously object
In a series (archived) of posts on X and an email exchange with Snopes, the CCW and its executive director Mike Prysner (archived) said the organization had seen a rise in the number of service members requesting support to conscientiously object to the war on Iran.
According to a CCW post (archived), the most-cited reason for conscientious objection among U.S troops is the deadly strike on a girls' school in Minab, Iran. Mounting evidence suggests the U.S. military was behind the attack.
Prysner said in an email that this was the "breaking point" for many service members seeking to conscientiously object to the war, though there were other reasons, including the opinion that this war does not defend U.S. interests and concerns about potential religious motives after a commander reportedly said the war would bring about the "return of Jesus." Another oft-cited reason was the perceived incompetence of U.S. President Donald Trump and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, Prysner said.
He told Snopes via email:
Some express they believe this is a war for Israel and has nothing to do with American interests. Others have been disturbed by the "Armageddon" rhetoric used by many commanders. Many do not see Trump and Hegseth as trustworthy or competent.
When asked to quantify the rise in requests to the CCW, Prysner said the organization had received a "500% increase in calls."
"Several dozens have started the CO process this month, with at least one new CO client per day," Prysner said via email. "This is over a 1,000% increase from the normal pace of cases (this is based on the previous high number of 80 cases per year, but sometimes it's as low as 50)."
Call numbers increased elsewhere
Prysner said these numbers applied only to the CCW, but another organization performing the same work also reported an increase in calls. Lenore Yarger, a GI Rights Hotline counselor from Quaker House, said her organization received 212 calls in the first half of March 2026, a number it would normally see over an entire month.
Yarger said that while the GI Rights Hotline had received such calls after the U.S. attacked Venezuela and captured its President Nicolás Maduro, "Iran has caused the biggest spike in calls." She said the school bombing in Minab and "concern about the leadership" were the most frequent reasons for service members seeking to conscientiously object.
Yarger said the GI Rights Hotline was getting calls from service members in "all branches of the military." Prysner, meanwhile, said the profiles of callers varied:
Honestly, it is a very broad spectrum of new cases. We have a variety of officers, from pilots to physicians. We have lower enlisted in combat arms jobs, and those who work in support. We have non-commissioned officers. Service members who have been in for two years, some for more than 10. Some are religious but most are not (non-religious moral beliefs apply to CO status). We have clients in the Marines, Navy, Air Force and Army; both active and Reserve/Guard forces.
The CCW said on X that "at least three fighter pilots" had sought help to become conscientious objectors (archived):
Prysner said that the highest-ranking new CCW client had an
Snopes also reached out to Veterans for Peace for more details about conscientious objection requests. We will update this report should they respond.
For further reading, Snopes investigated more than a dozen claims during the first two weeks of the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran.