NEW DELHI, Oct. 23 -- A senior Iranian diplomat on Friday accused the United States of failing to apologise for the deadly bombing of a primary school in Iran's Minab city, claiming that 168 people were killed in the February 28 attack and that the bodies of some children remain unaccounted for nearly eight months later.
Speaking at the NDTV World Summit in New Delhi, Ayatullah Dr Abdul Majid Hakeem Elahi, representative of Iran's Supreme Leader, said families were still struggling with the aftermath of the attack, which claimed the lives of more than 150 people, including 123 children, according to figures cited in the report. Elahi alleged that the school had been attacked twice and criticised Washington for failing to acknowledge responsibility through a formal apology. "They attacked Iran. On February 28, they attacked a primary school two times and killed 168 innocent people at the school," he said.
Describing the continuing suffering of families who lost their children, Elahi said some bodies had not been recovered from the debris of the school. He said parents were unable to perform the customary rituals of mourning because they did not have graves where they could pay tribute to their children. The diplomat also recalled the beginning of the academic year in Iran earlier this month, when families gathered with books and notebooks in memory of the children who had died. According to Elahi, the occasion brought renewed grief to parents who were confronted with the absence of their children as schools reopened. He said the emotional consequences of the bombing continued to affect the families months after the attack.
Elahi criticised the United States for what he described as its failure to apologise for the attack. "Unfortunately till now the United States, the State of America, didn't apologise for this big mistake and for attacking our primary school," he said. He also stated that the United Nations had sent an investigative committee to examine the incident. The bombing of the school in Minab has drawn international scrutiny, particularly over the circumstances in which a civilian educational institution was struck during military operations. Earlier reporting citing a preliminary US assessment suggested that American forces were likely responsible for the strike, although the school was not believed to have been deliberately targeted. The assessment raised the possibility that outdated intelligence had contributed to the location being incorrectly identified as part of a military installation. However, the findings were preliminary and did not establish a final account of the incident.
The Minab bombing has become a major point of contention in discussions about civilian casualties, military targeting practices and accountability during the conflict involving Iran. A United Nations investigative panel has also examined the incident, with earlier reporting indicating that the attack could raise questions under international humanitarian law. Elahi's remarks at the summit highlighted Iran's continuing demand for accountability and the unresolved concerns of families affected by the bombing. His statements came during a session examining the changing geopolitical situation in the Middle East, as regional tensions and the humanitarian consequences of military operations remain central to international discussions.
Published by HT Digital Content Services with permission from Millennium Post.