UN mission finds Iran crimes against humanity, US war crimes in school strikes

UN fact-finding panel says Tehran's protest crackdown amounts to crimes against humanity, while US strikes on Iranian school and sports facility constitute war…

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A United Nations-backed fact-finding mission has determined that the Iranian government's violent suppression of the 2025-2026 protests involved gross violations that amount to crimes against humanity. The Independent International Fact-Finding Mission on Iran documented that the crackdown included murder, imprisonment, torture, and other inhumane acts committed as part of a widespread and systematic attack on civilian protesters.

In a parallel finding, the same UN mission concluded there are "reasonable grounds" to believe the United States committed war crimes in two military strikes on a school and sports facility in Iran in February. The experts, commissioned by the UN's top human rights body, said the strikes killed scores of Iranian civilians and constitute war crimes.

President Trump indicated Wednesday that the United States may be nearing the end of its nearly seven-month war with Iran, suggesting Tehran is open to a deal. The White House has not confirmed whether it will cooperate with the UN investigation or contest the war crimes findings.

The dual findings mark an extraordinary moment in which a single UN mission has documented alleged crimes by both the Iranian government against its own citizens and by the United States against Iranian civilians. Human rights organizations are calling for accountability proceedings at the International Criminal Court.

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