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Education across Iran is under pressure as schools and universities are hit in ongoing US-Israeli strikes, disrupting learning and raising concerns over whether such attacks on civilian infrastructure could amount to war crimes under international law.

Since February 28, more than 30 universities have been directly targeted, according to Iran’s Science Minister Hossein Simai Sarraf.

Speaking during a visit to Shahid Beheshti University in northern Tehran on Saturday, April 4 — a day after it was struck — he said the attacks were increasingly affecting the country’s education system. Iranian media reported extensive damage to academic buildings and research facilities at the site.

‘Centres of knowledge’ under fire in Iran, foreign minister says

In a post on X on Monday, Iran’s Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi said US-Israeli strikes had hit one of the country’s leading institutions, referring to it as the “MIT of Iran”, and described it as part of a broader pattern of attacks on universities.

He said the strikes were targeting centres of knowledge and warned that such actions would not go unanswered.

Scale of damage widens

The scale of the impact extends beyond individual campuses. Hassan Fartousi, Secretary-General of Iran’s National Commission for UNESCO, said around 160 locations within university campuses have been affected, including laboratories and faculties, with some colleges destroyed.

Separately, Quds News Network, citing a spokesperson for the Ministry of Education, on Monday, April 6, said at least 924 schools have been damaged since the conflict began.

In a post on X on Wednesday, April 1, Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesman Ismail Baghaei said more than 600 schools and educational centres had been targeted since February 28. He cited incidents including the “Taiba Tree” school in Minab, where more than 165 female students were reported killed, and the Lamard sports hall, describing the attacks as beyond the scope of what could be termed a “war crime”.

Schools and campuses shut as classes disrupted

Schools and universities across Iran have suspended in-person classes due to safety concerns, with many shifting to remote learning or halting academic activity altogether.

For students, the disruption is immediate. Lessons, laboratory work and practical training have been interrupted, while uncertainty over exams and academic schedules continues. In some areas, damage to student accommodation and school buildings has also forced evacuations.

Students caught in uncertainty

The impact is also reflected in individual stories. A 23-year-old Indian medical student, Hassan, who was pursuing his third-year MBBS in Isfahan, returned to his home in Poonch, Jammu and Kashmir, in mid-March as the situation worsened.

“I was at the prime of my course,” he told The Hindu. “I was preparing for internships. But this war… it shattered many dreams like mine.”

Hassan said he paid around USD 3,000 per semester in tuition, with monthly expenses of about USD 100. With classes halted for more than four months, he now fears losing an entire academic year.

“A whole semester has been ruined,” he said. “We don’t know if the war will stop or continue like Russia-Ukraine.”

Education system under strain

UNESCO-linked officials say the continued strikes are affecting access to education and damaging academic infrastructure.

As the conflict enters its sixth week on April 6, the impact is increasingly visible — not only in damaged campuses, but in the uncertainty facing students whose studies and future plans remain on hold.