TEHRAN – Iran’s ambassador to the United Nations has accused the United States and Israel of deliberately targeting Iranian universities and scientific institutions in an “unprecedented act of barbarity,” calling the attacks a war crime that no amount of intimidation or military pressure can quell.
Ambassador Amir Saeed Iravani detailed the systematic campaign of state terrorism in a series of letters to the UN Secretary-General and Security Council this week. He cited the early-morning airstrike on April 6 that caused extensive damage to Tehran’s Sharif University of Technology, which includes the faculties of civil engineering, electrical engineering, and research institutes for nanotechnology and environmental research. The attack follows a similar attack on Shahid Beheshti University on April 3, which damaged the university’s Laser and Plasma Laboratory.
“The deliberate targeting of scientific institutions and universities is a clear violation of international humanitarian law and amounts to a war crime,” Iravani wrote.
Iranian government spokesperson Fatemeh Mohajerani, speaking at a press conference at Shahid Beheshti University, echoed the defiant attitude. “The enemy cannot extinguish the light of Iranian science,” he said, adding that the latest attacks aim to undermine the achievements of the 47-year revolution and sever the ties between Iran and the motherland. “These miscalculations are wrong. Iran is the common denominator for all Iranians. Those who own a homeland will support it, and Iranians living abroad will never give in.”
President Trump’s threat receives harsh criticism
In a separate letter, Iravani expressed “utmost alarm” over President Trump’s public statements threatening to bomb Iranian bridges and power plants, infrastructure critical to civilian survival. “The deliberate targeting of civilians and civilian objects… constitutes a war crime and amounts to an act of blatant state terrorism,” Iravani wrote. “Even a terrorist group like ISIS would be ashamed to make such a reckless and horrifying public statement.”
Iran says US admits to supplying arms to rebels
The Iranian envoy also addressed President Trump’s recent interview with Fox News, in which the president said Washington provided weapons to Kurdish Iranian rebels during demonstrations in Iran in January. Iravani claimed the confession was “clear evidence” that the US was trying to turn peaceful protests into violence and bloodshed. He asserted that armed groups from other countries violated the United Nations Charter and the International Convention for the Suppression of the Financing of Terrorism, and that the United States bears full responsibility for the damage and suffering during the unrest in December 2025 and January 2026.
Condemnation against Saudi Arabia and the UAE
In his most detailed complaint, Iravani accused Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates of violating the principle of good neighborliness by allowing the United States and Israel to use their territory and airspace to launch attacks on Iran. He cited U.S. military F-35, F-15E, and F-16SV fighter jets that conducted bombing raids after passing through Saudi or Emirati airspace between March 23 and March 28, as well as U-2S reconnaissance planes and KC-135 tanker planes operating from those countries.
“The Islamic Republic of Iran expresses its strong and unequivocal protest against these illegal acts,” Iravani wrote, reaffirming Iran’s commitment to good neighborly relations. He added that Tehran reserves the inherent right to take all necessary measures, including self-defense, to protect its sovereignty and territorial integrity.
Mr. Irabani called for the Security Council to unequivocally condemn the attack, halt ongoing criminal conduct by the United States and Israel, and hold all those responsible, including President Trump and the Israeli Prime Minister, fully accountable under international law.