UN experts find grounds to believe US war crimes in Iran

UN human rights experts said on Thursday there are reasonable grounds to believe the United States committed war crimes in two strikes in Iran on 28 February 2026 that killed at least 177 civilians: a missile attack on a primary school in Minab and one on a sports complex in Lamerd.

What did the UN fact-finding mission conclude?

The Independent International Fact-Finding Mission on Iran said there were “reasonable grounds to believe that the US committed the war crime of launching an indiscriminate attack resulting in loss of life or injury to civilians or damage to civilian objects” in both incidents. The mission’s three independent experts reported to the UN Human Rights Council.

What happened at the school in Minab?

On 28 February 2026, when the US and Israel launched their war against Iran, Tomahawk missiles struck Shajareh Tayyebeh Primary School in Minab, killing at least 156 people including 120 children, local authorities said. The experts said the school stood beside an Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps naval complex also attacked that day but was clearly identifiable, with no information indicating military use. They concluded the school was “the intended point of impact” — survivors said it was struck twice — and noted the US is the only party to the conflict with Tomahawk missiles.

What happened in Lamerd?

Also on 28 February, Precision Strike Missiles dispersed clouds of tungsten pellets over a sports complex and residential area in Lamerd, killing at least 21 civilians including seven children, local authorities said. The experts said the complex was clearly identifiable and not indicated as a military target, and that the US is the only party to the conflict with PrSM missiles. The US military says it carried out no strikes on Lamerd that day and disputes that a PrSM was used.

How have Washington and Tehran responded?

The US previously denied striking Lamerd and said it was investigating Minab. A State Department official said Washington did not give credibility to the report’s findings. Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth has said the military would “never target civilian targets”; its inquiry into the Minab strike has not been released. Iran has not commented on the findings and has previously rejected allegations of systematic human rights violations.

What did the experts find about Iran’s protest crackdown?

The mission also found that Iranian authorities committed crimes against humanity during a crackdown on mass anti-government protests in December 2025 and January 2026, with killings by security forces on “a staggering and unprecedented scale” across all 31 provinces. Witnesses, health workers and victims’ families described security personnel firing assault rifles into crowds from rooftops and protesters blinded permanently by metal shotgun pellets. The experts said tens of thousands of detainees faced torture, solitary confinement and denial of legal counsel, and at least 29 men were executed after expedited trials linked to the unrest.

The report said the death toll could not be independently verified but that there were strong grounds to believe it was far higher than the official figure of 3,000, most of whom the government identified as security forces or bystanders. Human Rights Activists News Agency (Hrana), based in the US, says it has confirmed more than 7,000 killings, almost all protesters.

“Civilians in Iran are caught between gross human rights violations and crimes against humanity committed by their own government and the nation’s deadly conflict with the United States and Israel,” the fact-finding mission said in a statement on Thursday.

Elsewhere in the region, Saudi Arabia shut its East-West oil pipeline after a drone attack launched from Iraq, while Houthi forces seized the Red Sea port of Mokha, 75km from Bab al-Mandab.

Frequently asked questions

What did the UN fact-finding mission accuse the US of in Iran?

The Independent International Fact-Finding Mission on Iran said there were reasonable grounds to believe the US committed the war crime of launching indiscriminate attacks in strikes on a primary school in Minab and a sports complex in Lamerd on 28 February 2026.

How many civilians were killed in the Minab and Lamerd strikes?

Local authorities said at least 156 people, including 120 children, were killed at Shajareh Tayyebeh Primary School in Minab, and at least 21 civilians, including seven children, in Lamerd. The mission put the combined toll at at least 177 civilians.

What did the US say about the report’s findings?

A State Department official said the US did not give credibility to the findings. Washington previously denied striking Lamerd and said it was investigating Minab, while Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth has said the military would “never target civilian targets”.

What did the report say about Iran’s crackdown on protests?

The experts found Iranian authorities committed crimes against humanity during protests in December 2025 and January 2026, with killings by security forces on a staggering and unprecedented scale across all 31 provinces and at least 29 men executed after expedited trials.

With reporting from BBC News.

Stock image, not from the events described. Globe World — Jo%E3o%20Silas / Wikimedia Commons (CC0 1.0)