EditUN probe declares Iran conflict in breach of Charter, expresses horror over deadly school strike
U.S. dodges direct response following a devastating strike on a girls' school that claimed over 150 lives
An independent United Nations fact-finding mission has issued a scathing condemnation of the escalating conflict involving Iran, declaring that airstrikes by Israel and the United States, along with Iran’s subsequent retaliatory attacks across the region, constitute clear violations of the UN Charter.
The probe, released on Wednesday, highlights the dire humanitarian implications for Iranian civilians caught in the crossfire, particularly following a devastating strike on a girls’ school that claimed over 150 lives.
While international outrage mounts, the United States has notably avoided commenting directly on the UN’s findings, focusing instead on earlier statements denying intentional targeting of civilian sites.
The UN Independent International Fact-Finding Mission on the Islamic Republic of Iran, established to investigate human rights violations amid ongoing protests and economic unrest since December 2025, expanded its scope to address the recent military actions.
In its statement, the mission asserted that the attacks “run counter to the UN Charter, which prohibits the use of force against the territorial integrity or political independence of any State.”
This includes the initial U.S.-Israeli airstrikes launched on 28 February, which targeted Iranian nuclear facilities, military sites, and leadership, resulting in the deaths of key figures including Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.
Iran’s responses, involving missile barrages on U.S. assets and regional allies, were similarly deemed unlawful.
Central to the probe’s concerns is the human cost, with Iranian civilians described as trapped “between a large-scale military campaign that may go on for weeks or months, and a government with a long record of gross human rights violations.”
The mission warned that thousands of detainees from recent protests – many facing torture or execution – could be endangered by ongoing strikes on prisons and infrastructure.
Accounts from detainees, including a British couple held in Evin prison, reported explosions shaking facilities and causing structural damage.
The most visceral element of the report is the “deep shock” expressed over the bombing of the Shajareh Tayyebeh girls’ elementary school in Minab, southern Iran, on the conflict’s opening day.
Reports indicate a missile strike killed over 150 students and teachers, with more than 160 children among the dead according to a separate UN panel on child rights.
The victims were primarily girls aged 7 to 12, prompting global condemnation as a potential war crime under international humanitarian law, which prohibits deliberate attacks on civilian structures like schools.
UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk has called for an impartial investigation, emphasizing that the “onus is on the forces that carried out the attack.”
Legal experts have echoed the probe’s assessment, arguing that the U.S.-Israeli operation lacks justification under international law, absent UN Security Council authorization or evidence of an imminent threat qualifying as self-defence.
At a UN Security Council emergency session, most members refrained from directly criticizing the U.S. and Israel, focusing instead on calls for restraint and diplomacy, while placing blame on Iran’s nuclear pursuits and domestic repression.
Similarly, during discussions at the UN Human Rights Council, condemnations were mixed, with some states like Kuwait highlighting Iran’s aggression without addressing the initial strikes.
Notably absent from the discourse is a direct U.S. response to the UN probe’s findings. While U.S. officials have addressed the school strike – Secretary of State Marco Rubio stated on 2 March that the U.S. “would not deliberately target a school” and referred inquiries to the Pentagon for investigation – there has been no comment on the broader accusation of Charter violations.
War Secretary Pete Hegseth, when pressed on Wednesday about the munition used in the school attack, simply reiterated that the matter is under review, sidestepping questions on accountability or the probe’s conclusions.
This reticence aligns with a pattern observed in international forums, where the U.S. has justified its actions by referencing Iran’s alleged nuclear threats and past diplomatic failures, without engaging the legality critiques head-on.
The conflict’s ripple effects continue to unfold, with UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres warning of a “grave threat to international peace and security.”
With Reuters and additional content by EUalive.
Caption: A handout picture made available by the Iranian Foreign Press Department shows Iranians taking part during the funeral ceremony of the victims of an airstrike on a girls school in the city of Minab, southern Iran, 3 March 2026. At least 165 girl students and teachers were killed on 28 February 2026, in an Israel-US airstrike on the school, with the Israeli military claiming it was not aware of any attacks in the area. EPA/HANDOUT
Updated: March 5, 2026 - 07:42
