A United Nations fact-finding mission on Iran announced on Thursday that it has reasonable grounds to believe the United States conducted two military strikes in Iran in February, targeting a school and a sports facility. The mission characterized these attacks as war crimes under international law.

Simultaneously, the report found evidence that Iranian authorities committed crimes against humanity during their violent suppression of anti-government protests. These findings were detailed in a report by the Independent International Fact-Finding Mission on Iran, which is set to be presented to the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva.

The investigation examined US military actions during the conflict in Iran that began in February, alongside the Iranian government’s response to widespread unrest starting in late December. Neither the Iranian nor US permanent missions in Geneva have issued immediate responses to these findings.

US officials have maintained that their military operations comply with the laws of armed conflict, while Iran has consistently denied accusations of systematic human rights violations.

Regarding the US strikes, the UN experts identified the Shajareh Tayyebeh Primary School in Minab as a target of one attack, which resulted in the deaths of over 150 people, including approximately 120 children, Iranian sources. The mission concluded that the attack was indiscriminate, causing civilian casualties and damage to civilian infrastructure, thus constituting a war crime.

The report criticized the US for failing to update its targeting databases to reflect the school’s civilian status, despite its proximity to an Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps naval complex. This failure was described as more than mere negligence, with the US accused of recklessly directing strikes while aware of the substantial risk to civilians.

In June, former US President Donald Trump stated that no intentional attack on a girls’ school in Iran had occurred, referencing an internal investigation. Earlier reports revealed that a preliminary US military inquiry suggested US forces were likely responsible for the fatal strike in Minab, though the Pentagon has yet to release detailed findings after elevating the investigation.

The UN experts confirmed the school was a clearly civilian object with no evidence indicating military use. A similar conclusion was reached regarding a strike on a sports center in Lamerd, which damaged nearby residences and a school, causing 22 civilian casualties and injuries. This attack was also deemed indiscriminate and classified as a war crime. However, US Central Command stated in March that no strikes were launched in Lamerd on the reported date.

On the Iranian side, the UN mission documented a widespread and systematic campaign of violence against civilians during protests that began in late December. This crackdown involved unlawful killings, torture, arbitrary detentions, enforced disappearances, and severe restrictions on freedom of expression.

Human rights organizations note that many bystanders were killed during the harshest crackdown since the 1979 Shi’ite clerical takeover. Tehran attributed the unrest to “terrorists and rioters” supported by exiled opposition groups and foreign adversaries, including the US and Israel.

The mission was unable to independently verify the official death toll but suggested that casualties and injuries were likely significantly higher than the reported 3,038 deaths and 25,000 injuries. The government’s response—including lethal force, internet blackouts, and the use of the death penalty—marked a notable escalation in suppressing dissent compared to previous incidents.