The United States House of Representatives has narrowly rejected a war powers resolution that would have halted President Donald Trump’s war on Iran and required congressional authorisation for any further attacks.

The ⁠vote on Thursday was 219 ⁠to 212 ⁠in the House, where Trump’s fellow Republicans control ‌a narrow majority of seats.

It is the second vote in as many days, after the Senate defeated a similar measure along party lines.

Under the US Constitution, only Congress can declare war. Presidents can unilaterally conduct some military actions, but legal scholars have long argued that, under the founding US document, that authority only applies in instances of immediate self-defence of the country.

“Donald Trump is not a king, and if he believes the war with Iran is in our national interest, then he must come to Congress and make the case,” said Representative Gregory Meeks, the top Democrat on the House Foreign Affairs Committee.

The House also approved a separate measure affirming that Iran is the largest state sponsor of terrorism.

Republican Representative Brian Mast of Florida, chairman of the House Foreign Affairs Committee, publicly thanked Trump for taking action against Iran, saying the president is using his own constitutional authority to defend the US against the “imminent threat” the country posed.

Mast, an army veteran who worked as a bomb disposal expert in Afghanistan, said the war powers resolution was effectively asking “that the president do nothing”.

However, after launching a surprise attack against Iran on Saturday, Trump has scrambled to win support for the war on Iran, a conflict Americans of all political persuasions were already wary of entering.

Trump administration officials spent hours behind closed doors on Capitol Hill this week trying to reassure lawmakers that they have the situation under control.

Six US military members were killed over the weekend in a drone strike in Kuwait, and Trump has said more Americans could die.

Thousands of Americans abroad have scrambled for flights, many lighting up phone lines at congressional offices as they seek help trying to flee the Middle East. (Al Jazeera)

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