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American and Israeli fighter jets struck multiple strategic and civilian targets inside Iran's capital on Friday afternoon, including Shahid Beheshti University, one of the country's leading academic institutions, Iranian state media reported.
The strikes mark yet another escalation in the ongoing US-Israel-Iran conflict. According to IRIB (Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting), air raids hit Shahid Beheshti University in the Velenjak district of northern Tehran as well as Mehrabad International Airport in the western part of the city, causing damage to infrastructure and academic facilities. At the time of reporting, details on casualties and the extent of the destruction had not been independently verified. The university, established in 1960 and named after prominent revolutionary figure Ayatollah Mohammad Beheshti, is a major centre for research and higher education in Tehran and has been a hub for thousands of students and faculty. The reported attacks on educational institutions come days after a series of US-Israel strikes targeted other key civilian and research facilities, including the Pasteur Institute of Iran -- a century-old biomedical research and public health institution. Iran's health ministry said the airstrike on the Pasteur Institute in central Tehran caused severe damage, labelling the incident a "direct assault on international health security" and a violation of international law. In reaction to the strikes on health infrastructure, Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian urged international bodies to respond, writing on social media platform X: "What message does attacking hospitals, pharmaceutical companies and the Pasteur Institute ... as a medical research centre in Iran convey?" He called on the "World Health Organisation, the International Federation of Red Cross, Doctors Without Borders and physicians worldwide to respond to this crime against humanity." In recent days, the US and Israeli military campaign has also struck pharmaceutical research facilities such as the Toufiq Darou pharmaceutical research company in Tehran, drawing condemnation from Iranian officials who described the attack as a war crime and "a blatant crime against humanity." The World Health Organisation warned about multiple attacks on health facilities in Iran in recent days, highlighting the destruction at the Pasteur Institute as one of the worst damage incidents. The strikes unfold against a backdrop of intensifying conflict between Tehran and coalition forces led by the United States and Israel, which started with a major joint offensive on Iranian territory earlier this year. Both sides continue to trade accusations, and the conflict shows little sign of de-escalating, with infrastructure, civilian and military alike, increasingly caught in the crossfire. (ANI)
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