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Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi told an emergency session of the U.N. Human Rights Council that the attack on Shajareh Tayyebeh Girl's School in Minab, southern Iran, was a deliberate act and constitutes "a war crime and a crime against humanity."
He also called for unequivocal condemnation and accountability, and warned that more than 600 schools across Iran have been destroyed or damaged in what he described as an illegal war imposed by the United States and Israel.
Araghchi said the attack on the school in Minab, in which more than 175 students and teachers were killed, was calculated and deliberate.
"The attack on Shajareh Tayyebeh school in Minab was not a mere accident and not a miscalculation. When the American and Israeli aggressors claim to possess the most advanced technologies and most precise military and data systems, no one can believe the attack on this school was anything other than deliberate and premeditated," Araghchi stated.
"Targeting Shajareh Tayyebeh school is a war crime and a crime against humanity, a crime that requires explicit and unconditional condemnation from all, and clear and unambiguous accountability for its perpetrators," he added.
He said the contradictory statements made by the United States in an attempt to justify the attack cannot absolve it of responsibility.
Araghchi said the Minab school is not the only victim of what he described as the aggressors' crimes over the past 27 days of the war.
He said more than 600 schools across Iran have been destroyed or damaged, resulting in more than 1,000 students and teachers killed or wounded.
He said hospitals, ambulances, medical staff, Red Crescent relief workers, refineries, water sources and residential areas have all been deliberately targeted.
"The illegal aggression against our country has led to the destruction of schools, hospitals, ambulances and water treatment facilities," he said.
Araghchi said the pattern of targeting, combined with the rhetoric of the aggressors, leaves little doubt about their intent.
"The titles 'war crime' and 'crime against humanity' alone are not sufficient to describe the severity of the catastrophes they are committing. The pattern of targeting by the aggressors, along with their rhetoric, leaves little doubt that their clear intention is the commission of genocide," he said.
Araghchi said the war was launched on Feb. 28 while Iran and the United States were engaged in a diplomatic process to resolve American concerns about Iran's nuclear program.
"They betrayed diplomacy for the second time in nine months, by disrupting and collapsing the negotiating table," he said.
"Condemning such a brutal attack on an inherently civilian location, where the most innocent human beings are present and seeking knowledge, is not merely a legal obligation within human rights frameworks; it is a moral and human necessity. Our conscience, far more deeply than any court, will judge us," Araghchi said.
Araghchi called on member states to explicitly condemn the aggressors and demonstrate that the community of states and the collective conscience of humanity holds them accountable for their crimes against the Iranian people.
"Indifference and silence in the face of injustice will never bring security and peace. It will only lead to greater insecurity and wider violations of rights," he said.
He warned that the U.N. and the fundamental values it represents are in serious danger.
He closed by reiterating Iran's position: "Iran has never sought war. Iranians are a peace-loving and noble people who are heirs to one of the richest civilizations in the world. However, they have shown a complete and unwavering determination to defend themselves against ruthless aggressors who know no limits in committing all kinds of crimes, a defense that will continue for as long as necessary."
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