United Nations human rights experts have said there are reasonable grounds to believe that the United States committed war crimes in two strikes in Iran that killed at least 177 civilians.
The Independent International Fact-Finding Mission on Iran said the February strikes on a primary school in Minab and a sports complex in Lamerd appeared to be indiscriminate attacks that killed civilians and damaged civilian infrastructure.
The United States has not commented on the report. Washington previously denied carrying out the Lamerd strike and said it was investigating the incident in Minab.
The experts also accused Iranian authorities of committing crimes against humanity during a crackdown on mass anti-government protests between December 2025 and January 2026.
School strike killed 156
The fact-finding mission said a US missile strike on Shajareh Tayyebeh Primary School in Minab on February 28 killed at least 156 people, including 120 children, according to local authorities.
The strike occurred on the same day the US and Israel launched their war against Iran.
According to the experts, the school was located near an Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps naval complex that was also attacked that day.
However, they said the school was clearly identifiable and found no evidence that it was being used for military purposes.
The experts said evidence gathered, including media reports suggesting that a preliminary US military investigation found American forces responsible, gave them reasonable grounds to believe the US carried out the attack.
They also said the US was the only party in the conflict known to possess Tomahawk missiles.
The experts concluded that the school was the intended target and that the damage was not caused by an errant missile or collateral damage from the nearby IRGC facility.
Survivors reportedly told investigators that the school was struck twice.
The US military has not released the findings of its investigation. Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth has previously said the US would “never target civilian targets”.
21 killed in Lamerd strike
Another strike on February 28 hit a sports complex and nearby residential area in Lamerd, killing at least 21 civilians, including seven children, according to local authorities.
The fact-finding mission said the attack involved Precision Strike Missiles dispersing tungsten pellets over the area.
The experts said the sports complex was clearly identifiable and found no information indicating that it was being used for military purposes.
They said evidence pointed to the US as the likely perpetrator, noting that the US was the only party in the conflict known to possess the PrSM missiles.
Washington has denied carrying out any strike on Lamerd that day and disputed reports that a PrSM missile was used.
In both cases, the UN experts said there were reasonable grounds to believe the US had committed the war crime of launching an indiscriminate attack resulting in civilian deaths, injuries or damage to civilian objects.
UN experts accuse Iran of crackdown
The report also examined the Iranian government’s response to mass protests that spread across the country between December 2025 and January 2026.
The experts described the crackdown as an unprecedented escalation, alleging widespread use of lethal force, mass killings, injuries and arrests.
Witnesses, healthcare workers and relatives of victims reportedly told investigators that security forces positioned themselves on rooftops and other elevated locations and fired assault rifles into crowds.
Some protesters suffered severe injuries to the head, chest and eyes from metal shotgun pellets, with some reportedly left permanently blind.
The experts also accused security forces of attacking healthcare facilities, beating and arresting injured protesters and detaining some medical workers.
They said tens of thousands of people were detained and subjected to torture, solitary confinement and denial of legal representation.
At least 29 men were reportedly executed after expedited trials on charges linked to the protests.
The mission said it could not independently verify the total death toll but found strong grounds to believe it was significantly higher than the Iranian government’s official figure of 3,000.
The US-based Human Rights Activists News Agency said it had confirmed more than 7,000 deaths, most of them protesters.
The UN experts concluded that Iranian authorities had committed widespread human rights violations that amounted to crimes against humanity, including murder, imprisonment, torture and other inhumane acts.
Iranian authorities have accused the US and Israel of encouraging the unrest and blamed the deaths on what they described as “terrorists” and “rioters”.
Reuters.
