GENEVA(National Times)- Iran’s foreign minister on Friday branded a deadly strike on an Iranian school on the first day of the Middle East war as a “calculated” US assault.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Abbas Araghchi said “more than 175 students and teachers were slaughtered in cold blood” in a “calculated, phased assault” in the February 28 strike on an Iranian elementary school in Minab.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
At an urgent debate in the United Nations Human Rights Council focused on the strike, he described it in his video address as “a war crime and a crime against humanity, one that demands unequivocal condemnation by all, and unambiguous accountability for the culprits”.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
UN rights chief Volker Turk meanwhile told the council the bombing evoked “visceral horror”, insisting on the need for “justice”.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Mohaddeseh Falahat, the mother of two children killed in the attack, also spoke to the council by video.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Calling on the diplomats in Geneva “not to let this tragedy be forgotten”, she added: “No mother is prepared to hear the words: ‘Your child is not coming back’.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n
‘DELIBERATE AND INTENTIONAL’<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The attack happened on the day the United States and Israel launched the war with attacks across Iran. In retaliation, Tehran struck targets in Israel and Gulf nations.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
A US Tomahawk cruise missile hit the elementary school due to a targeting mistake, according to the preliminary findings of a US military investigation reported by The New York Times.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The newspaper said the US military had been bombing an adjacent Iranian base, of which the school building was formerly a part. The target coordinates were set using outdated data, the paper reported.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
US President Donald Trump intially suggested that Iran itself may have been responsible — despite Iran not having Tomahawk missiles.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
UN rights chief Turk insisted that “the onus is on those who carried out the attack to investigate it promptly, impartially, transparently and thoroughly”.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
“Senior US officials have said the strike is under investigation,” he said in a video address, calling for Washington to swiftly conclude the probe and make the findings public.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Araghchi did not wait for the results of the probe to attribute blame.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
“At a time when the American-Israeli aggressors, in their own assertions, possess the most advanced technologies, and the highest-precision military and data systems, no one can believe that the attack on the school was anything other than deliberate and intentional,” he told the council.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
‘ATROCITY’<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n “This atrocity cannot be justified, cannot be concealed, and must not be met with silence and indifference,” the minister said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n “The United States’ contradictory remarks aimed at justifying their crime could not, in any manner, elude their responsibility.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n Friday’s discussion, held at the request of Iran, China and Cuba, marked the second urgent debate before the rights council this week focused on the war in the Middle East.<\/p>\n\n\n\n On Wednesday, a debate requested by Bahrain on behalf of the Gulf Cooperation Council and Jordan, ended with the 47-member rights council adopting by consensus a resolution condemning Iran’s “egregious attacks” on its Gulf neighbours, calling for swift “reparation” to all victims of its strikes.<\/p>\n\n\n\n No draft resolution was discussed during Friday’s debate, but countries lined up to condemn the school strike and the Middle East war more broadly.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Chinese ambassador Jia Guide slammed the United States and Israel for launching their attacks on Iran “without authorisation of the Security Council, which is the root cause of this tragedy”.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Cuban ambassador Rodolfo Benitez Verson called for “an independent and impartial investigation” into the school strike, which he labelled a “war crime”.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The United States and Israel have both disengaged from the council, and did not speak during the debate.<\/p>\n\n\n\n “The people of Iran are caught between conflict and repression,” the UN rights chief warned.<\/p>\n\n\n\n “War does not reduce the responsibility of the Iranian authorities to abide by their human rights obligations,” he added.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" GENEVA(National Times)- Iran’s foreign minister on Friday branded a deadly strike on an Iranian school on the first day of the Middle East war as a “calculated” US assault. Abbas Araghchi said “more than 175 students and teachers were slaughtered in cold blood” in a “calculated, phased assault” in the February 28 strike on an […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":123145,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[4],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-123144","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-international","entry"],"yoast_head":"\n