Geneva: A United Nations-mandated fact-finding mission on Iran has said it found “reasonable grounds” to believe that the United States committed war crimes in two airstrikes during the conflict in Iran.
The mission said the two incidents resulted in the deaths of at least 178 civilians, including women and children. One of the strikes involved the Shajareh Tayyebeh school in the southern Iranian city of Minab.
The findings come from human rights experts commissioned by the UN Human Rights Council. The mission also reported that Iranian state security forces had carried out killings on what it described as a “staggering scale”, highlighting the civilian impact of both the international conflict and internal repression.
Minab school strike
The Minab school was struck during the opening phase of the conflict on February 28, according to investigations cited by the mission.
An Associated Press investigation found evidence indicating that a US missile struck the Shajareh Tayyebeh school. Iranian authorities have reported that 168 people were killed in the strike, with children accounting for most of the victims.
The United States has not formally acknowledged responsibility for the Minab strike or released the findings of its own investigation. The reported casualty figures have also not received a final independent accounting.
The school building was subsequently heavily damaged and has become a site of remembrance for families of those killed. AP reported that the facility was being considered as a memorial to the children who died in the attack.
Second strike under investigation
The UN-backed mission also examined a second US strike in Lamerd, where civilians were reportedly killed at a sports complex and residential area.
The mission's findings are based on its assessment of available evidence and use the threshold of “reasonable grounds”; they do not represent a final judicial determination of criminal responsibility.
The US military has disputed responsibility for the Lamerd incident. US Central Command has denied that it carried out the strike on the location identified in reports.
Mission also reports Iranian violations
The fact-finding mission's assessment also addressed alleged violations by Iranian authorities.
It said civilians in Iran were caught between the effects of the conflict involving the United States and Israel and serious human rights violations attributed to Iranian state security forces.
The mission's findings therefore cover both the conduct of the international conflict and alleged abuses inside Iran.
The UN Human Rights Council has previously maintained an independent fact-finding mechanism on Iran to document and preserve evidence concerning serious human rights violations.
The latest findings are likely to increase scrutiny of civilian casualties from the conflict, particularly where attacks have struck or affected civilian locations.
