UN mission finds US airstrikes in Iran may constitute war crimes

A UN-backed investigation has concluded there are “reasonable grounds to believe” the United States committed war crimes during two airstrikes on Iranian soil in February 2026, killing at least 178 civilians in attacks that hit a primary school and a residential neighborhood. The Independent International Fact-Finding Mission on Iran published its findings on September 17, describing the strikes as indiscriminate under international humanitarian law. The two attacks, carried out on February 28, coincided with the opening phase of the US-Israel military campaign against Iran. What the strikes hit The first strike targeted the city of Minab, where Tomahawk missiles struck a primary school. Between 156 and 170 people died, according to the mission’s assessment. Of those, an estimated 120 to 123 were children between the ages of 6 and 13. The school displayed what investigators described as clear civilian indicators: murals, playgrounds, the kind of features that make a building obviously non-military from aerial surveillance. The second attack hit a sports complex and surrounding residential area in Lamerd, killing 22 civilians. That strike employed Precision Strike Missiles, which di...