Baghaei: US targeting of civilian sites in Iran constitutes war crimes

Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei says US attacks on residential and civilian areas in the cities of Qeshm, Minab, and Lamerd constitute war crimes, vowing that Tehran will use all available international mechanisms to hold perpetrators accountable.

Speaking at his weekly press conference on Monday, Baghaei said targeting residential areas and civilian sites has become "habit" of the United States and is “not the first time” Washington has carried out such crimes.

He added that the US began its imposed war against Iran by attacking non-military and residential targets, emphasizing that strikes on the residences of Iranian officials were not legitimate as per the international law.

"The attack on the residence of our martyred Leader [Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei] and that of other prominent figures should not distract us from the fact that all of America's actions over the past five months have amounted to war crimes,” he said.

Baghaei specifically pointed to attacks on the Shajareh Tayyebeh School in Minab and a crowded sports stadium in Lamerd, stressing that “all of these were non-military and residential areas.”

He noted that such attacks have continued throughout the five months after the beginning of the US-Israeli war of aggression against the Islamic Republic on February 28.

“These measures demonstrate the US insistence on violating all norms and rules of international law and humanitarian law,” the Iranian spokesperson emphasized.

He further pointed to explicit admissions by US officials since the outset of the 40-day war that they would not abide by legal restrictions.

He cited remarks by the US secretary of war using the phrase 'no mercy, no quarters,' saying such statements reflected the intention to commit war crimes.

"Therefore, the actions that the US has carried out in Qeshm, Minab, and Lamerd are all examples of war crimes, and all countries are authorized and duty bound to hold perpetrators of these crimes accountable,” Baghaei emphasized.

“Certainly, we will use every available international means at the international level to hold the perpetrators and architects of these crimes accountable,” he pointed out.

Killing of civilians epitomizes ‘American human rights’: Iran’s top rights body

Iran’s High Council for Human Rights says renewed US attacks on a residential building on the southern Qeshm Island epitomize American human rights.

The February 28 strike on the Shajareh Tayyebeh School occurred on the first day of the US-Israeli military aggression against Iran and is considered the war's deadliest attack on civilians.

Iranian officials put the death toll at 168, including 120 students and 26 teachers. More than 110 people were wounded.

Investigations indicate three precision-strike Tomahawk missiles hit the school. The school was struck three separate times.

On the same afternoon, American Precision Strike Missiles (PrSM) hit a sports hall in Lamerd filled with civilians—including teenage volleyball players, women, men, and a two-year-old girl. The attack killed 21 people, including 4 children, and injuring 100 people.

On Wednesday night, three members of a family, including the mother, father, and their two-year-old boy, were killed in a US airstrike on their home in Chah Tangu in Qeshm. Two other children from the family were rescued from the rubble shortly after the strike and were transferred to a hospital for treatment.

Iran condemns US-Saudi strikes on Iraq

In a separate remark, Baghaei said Iran condemned US and Saudi attacks on positions in Iraq through official diplomatic channels and conveyed its "strong protest" to the Saudi side.

He added that Saudi Arabia has provided explanations in this regard claiming it did not participate in it but "what is certain is that this crime resulted from a joint operation with the United States" that led to the martyrdom of a number of Iranian citizens as well.

Baghaei reiterated that security of Iraq, the preservation of its national sovereignty, and the protection of Iraqi citizens' lives are important to Iran, particularly during the annual Arbaeen pilgrimage, when hundreds of thousands of pilgrims travel to holy sites in Iraq.

He added that the crime was another indication of US actions against matters considered “sacred and valuable” to Iran.

Iran condemns ‘criminal’ US-Saudi strikes on Iraq, warns of plot to widen regional war

The Iranian Foreign Ministry has issued a fierce condemnation of joint airstrikes by the United States and Saudi Arabia on Iraq.

On Wednesday, the United States and Saudi Arabia carried out coordinated aerial aggression against several bases and weapons depots belonging to Iraq's Popular Mobilization Forces (PMU), also known as Hashd al-Sha’abi.

In a statement released on Wednesday, the Iranian Foreign Ministry issued a fierce condemnation of the joint US-Saudi airstrikes on Iraq, saying the attacks were a blatant violation of Baghdad’s sovereignty and a deliberate attempt by Washington and the Israeli regime to widen the regional war.

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