A United Nations fact-finding mission said Thursday it had reasonable grounds to believe U.S. forces were responsible for deadly strikes on a school and a sports facility in Iran in February, concluding that the attacks amounted to war crimes.
In the same report, the Independent International Fact-Finding Mission on Iran found that Iranian authorities committed crimes against humanity during their crackdown on nationwide anti-government protests that began in late December.
The mission, whose mandate includes investigating serious human rights violations in Iran and preserving evidence for potential legal proceedings, is due to present its findings to the UN Human Rights Council during its September-October session.
Deadly strike on Minab school
The investigators said they had reasonable grounds to believe U.S. forces carried out the attack on the Shajareh Tayyebeh Primary School in Minab, where Iranian authorities said more than 150 people were killed, including about 120 schoolchildren.
UN investigators had opened an inquiry into the strike in March after U.S. military investigators concluded preliminarily that American forces were likely responsible, although the Pentagon had not reached a final determination.
The fact-finding mission concluded that the attack was indiscriminate, caused civilian deaths and damaged civilian infrastructure, and therefore amounted to a war crime.
According to the report, the U.S. relied on intelligence indicating that a senior Iranian military commander was at the site but failed to sufficiently verify that information before launching the strike.
Feb. 28: A girls’ school in Minab, southern Iran, allegedly struck by US forces
(Photo: Abbas Zakeri/Mehr News/WANA (West Asia News Agency) via REUTERS )
Investigators said the failure to update targeting intelligence and confirm that the building remained a military objective went beyond simple negligence.
“Rather, the US directed the strikes at the building of the school while being aware of a substantial risk of striking a civilian object and acting recklessly as regards the possibility that this would happen,” the report said.
UN experts had previously described the Minab school as a protected civilian object and called for an independent investigation, saying attacks on civilian schools can constitute war crimes unless the facilities have become military objectives.
President Donald Trump said in June that “nobody” had intentionally attacked a girls’ school in Iran, citing an investigation into the incident. The Pentagon later elevated its inquiry but has not publicly released preliminary findings.
The UN mission said it found no evidence that the school was being used for military purposes.
Second strike in Lamerd
Investigators reached a similar conclusion about a U.S. strike on a sports center in Lamerd.
According to the report, the attack damaged nearby residential buildings and a school, killing and wounding 22 civilians. The mission concluded that the strike was indiscriminate and therefore also constituted a war crime.
US strike on a sports center in Lamerd
(Photo: Majid Asgaripour/WANA (West Asia News Agency) via REUTERS)
U.S. Central Command said in March that American forces had not carried out any strikes in Lamerd that day.
The findings come as the UN mission continues to warn about civilian casualties from the ongoing conflict. Earlier this week, it called on all sides to comply with international law after additional U.S. strikes in southern Iran reportedly killed civilians, stressing that parties must distinguish between military and civilian targets and take precautions to minimize civilian harm.
Iran accused of crimes against humanity
The report also examined Tehran’s response to the mass protests that erupted in late December.
Investigators concluded that Iranian authorities carried out a widespread and systematic attack on civilians involving unlawful killings, torture, arbitrary detention, enforced disappearances and severe restrictions on freedom of expression.
Protests in Tehran, Iran, on Jan. 8
(Photo: Anonymous/Getty Images)
The mission said it could not independently establish the full number of casualties but believed the toll was substantially higher than official Iranian figures of 3,038 people killed and 25,000 injured.
Iran has blamed the unrest on “terrorists and rioters” backed by exiled opponents and foreign powers, including the United States and Israel, and has repeatedly rejected allegations of systematic human rights abuses.
The UN investigators said the crackdown represented a significant escalation from previous patterns of repression, citing the scale of violence, killings, internet restrictions and use of the death penalty.
The Human Rights Council expanded the mission’s mandate in January to urgently investigate alleged violations linked to the protests that began on Dec. 28, 2025, including for possible use in future legal proceedings.