A recent investigation by the United Nations has concluded that United States military strikes in Iran may constitute war crimes. The report specifically addresses two separate incidents from February, including an attack on a primary school in Minab and another on a sports facility in Lamerd.

The UN’s Independent International Fact-Finding Mission on Iran has asserted that it has reasonable grounds to believe US forces were responsible for these strikes. The findings will be submitted to the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva. The mission claims that the actions of Iranian authorities during a national crackdown on protests also amount to crimes against humanity, highlighting significant human rights violations in the country.

Civilian Casualties in Minab School Strike

The most alarming allegation concerns the attack on Shajareh Tayyebeh Primary School in Minab, where official figures suggest more than 150 fatalities, including around 120 schoolchildren. UN experts indicated that they believe US forces executed this strike, which they characterised as indiscriminate and resulting in civilian deaths as well as damage to civilian infrastructure.

This categorisation allows the incident to be classified as a war crime under international law. The investigation highlighted that the school was clearly designated as a civilian site, with no evidence supporting claims that it was being used for military purposes. Despite its proximity to an Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps naval base, the US allegedly did not have updated information in its targeting systems nor established that the school constituted a legitimate military target.

The report suggests that the strike occurred with a disregard for the risk to civilian life. “In this case, the US directed the strikes at a building that was well known to be civilian, with a substantial risk of collateral damage,” the report stated. Previous statements from US President Donald Trump claimed that no deliberate targeting of a school had occurred, although a Pentagon investigation into the incident is currently under expansion without any preliminary findings disclosed.

Assessment of Sports Facility Incident in Lamerd

The UN mission has also scrutinised a strike that targeted a sports centre in Lamerd, which resulted in damage to nearby residential structures and a school, with 22 civilians reportedly either killed or injured as a consequence. The UN experts similarly classified this attack as indiscriminate, labelling it a war crime as well.

The US Central Command maintained that no strikes had been executed in Lamerd on the specific day in question, placing additional emphasis on the discord between the UN findings and the US military’s statements regarding their operations in the region. The UN report continues to draw attention to the critical humanitarian situation in Iran, juxtaposing military incidents with widespread domestic unrest.

Govt Crackdown and Human Rights Violations

The UN report also covers the governmental response to protests that began in late December, with Iranian authorities allegedly engaging in a broad suppression of civilian demonstrations. This crackdown reportedly involved unlawful killings, torture, arbitrary detentions, and enforced disappearances, marking the most extensive government response to dissent since the 1979 revolution.

Despite the claims made by rights organisations, Iranian officials attribute the unrest to “terrorists and rioters” allegedly supported by external adversaries, including the US and Israel. While the UN mission could not authenticate the overall death toll, they estimate that the actual number of fatalities and injuries likely exceeds the official statistics, which account for 3,038 deaths and 25,000 injuries.

The situation has seen a considerable escalation in governmental response tactics, including killings, an internet blackout, and the imposition of the death penalty, indicating a significant deviation from prior methods of handling dissent.

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