A United Nations fact-finding mission has concluded there are reasonable grounds to believe the United States committed war crimes during two military strikes in Iran that resulted in the deaths of at least 177 civilians. The report, released by the Independent International Fact-Finding Mission on Iran, also found that Iranian authorities committed crimes against humanity during a severe crackdown on anti-government protests earlier this year.
Published on Thursday to the UN Human Rights Council, the investigation focused on attacks launched on February 28 as part of a broader conflict involving the US and Israel. Experts determined that missile strikes on a primary school in Minab and a sports complex in Lamerd constituted indiscriminate attacks on civilian infrastructure.
The Shajareh Tayyebeh Primary School in Minab was hit by Tomahawk missiles, killing at least 156 people, including 120 children. Although the school is located near an Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps naval complex, the mission found no evidence it was used for military purposes. Citing survivor testimony that the school was struck twice and noting that the US is the sole party in the conflict possessing such missiles, experts concluded the strike was the intended target rather than collateral damage. The US has stated it is investigating the incident but denied giving credibility to the report’s findings.
In a separate incident in Lamerd, Precision Strike Missiles released tungsten pellets over a sports complex, killing at least 21 civilians, including seven children. The US military denied carrying out any strikes in Lamerd on that day and disputed reports identifying the weapon as a PrSM. However, the UN experts maintained there were reasonable grounds to believe the US was responsible, again citing its exclusive possession of the weapon system.
State Department officials reiterated that protecting civilians is a top priority for the US but dismissed the report’s conclusions. Iranian officials have not yet responded to the latest findings but have previously rejected allegations of systematic human rights violations.
The report also detailed the violent suppression of mass protests in Iran between December 2025 and January 2026. Experts described an
War is hell, and children paying the price in both Minab and Lamerd breaks my heart completely.
It is troubling that the US denies both the Lamerd strike and the weapon type despite expert consensus on exclusive possession.
Does this report actually carry any legal weight? Or is it just another diplomatic talking point destined for the archives?
I find it hard to trust a UN body that only scrutinizes US actions while ignoring other global conflicts with similar or worse outcomes.
The civilian toll is devastating. Regardless of the political narrative, protecting schools and sports complexes should be non-negotiable.