Iran alleges U.S., Israel targeted universities, research centers

Iran claims that recent attacks, attributed to the United States and Israel, have deliberately targeted educational and research institutions, including universities and a primary school. The article states that young girls, aged seven to 12, were killed in an attack on a primary school in Minab, an incident that reportedly preceded the broader armed aggression against Iran.

According to Iranian reports cited by media outlets like RT and CNN, numerous scientific and academic centers have been hit. These include the University of Science and Technology of Iran, founded in 1929, the Shahid Beheshti University in Tehran, and the Isfahan University of Technology. Facilities such as the Faculty of Civil Engineering, the Philosophy of Science group, nanotechnology and environmental research centers, and the Electrical Engineering Faculty also reportedly sustained damage.

The Institute for Laser and Plasma Research at Shahid Beheshti University was allegedly struck by U.S. and Israeli fighter jets. A statement from the institute described the act as hostile, threatening the safety of academics and the country's scientific environment, and constituting an attack on reason, research, and freedom of thought. The Pasteur Institute of Tehran, over a century old and focused on infectious diseases and vaccine production, was also reportedly destroyed, an event the Ministry of Health spokesperson deemed a direct attack on international health security. Iran maintains that these actions, alongside the killing of civilians involved in its nuclear program, aim to weaken its scientific and cultural infrastructure.

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this hostile act not only attacks the security of academics and the scientific environment of the country, but it also constitutes a clear attack on reason, research, and freedom of thought.