A United Nations-mandated fact-finding mission said Thursday it found reasonable grounds to believe two U.S. strikes in Iran constituted war crimes, a consequential but nonbinding finding that places the conduct of American forces under formal international scrutiny.

The Independent International Fact-Finding Mission on Iran attributed the February 28 attacks on a primary school in Minab and a sports complex in Lamerd to the United States. In its new statement, the mission said civilians had been trapped between extreme repression by Iranian authorities and violations arising from the conflict involving the United States and Israel. Its full report is scheduled to be presented to the U.N. Human Rights Council on Monday.

The mission is not a court, and its conclusion does not establish criminal liability for any individual. It does, however, represent the most direct finding yet by an international investigative body about U.S. responsibility for the two attacks. The panel said the evidence met its “reasonable grounds to believe” standard, which is lower than the standard needed for a criminal conviction but stronger than an allegation or preliminary suspicion.

What the mission found

At the girls’ school in Minab, the mission concluded that the building was clearly civilian, had not been used for military purposes and was the intended target rather than incidental damage. Iranian officials have put the death toll above 150, including roughly 120 children, according to Reuters. The Associated Press, citing Iranian state media, reported 168 deaths, most of them children. The differing totals have not been independently reconciled.

The mission said the failure to update targeting information and verify that the site remained a military objective amounted to more than negligence. An earlier Reuters investigation reported that U.S. forces may have relied on outdated intelligence indicating the property had once been connected to a military use. The school had been operating as a civilian educational facility when it was hit.

In Lamerd, the mission attributed a separate strike on a sports complex to U.S. forces and said 22 civilians were killed or injured. The Associated Press previously found that fragments and damage patterns were consistent with a U.S.-made precision munition, based on an examination by weapons specialists. Its earlier reporting documented the evidence while noting that U.S. Central Command had denied conducting a strike in the city that day.

The panel’s latest findings go beyond those earlier journalistic investigations by applying international humanitarian law to the evidence. The mission said both attacks violated the principle of distinction between civilians and military objectives and therefore constituted war crimes. It did not identify individual commanders or operators who might bear criminal responsibility.

U.S. review remains unresolved

The Pentagon has said it opened an investigation into the Minab strike, but it has not released preliminary findings. President Donald Trump initially blamed Iran for the school attack without offering evidence, then said he would accept the outcome of an investigation. The administration has maintained more broadly that U.S. operations comply with the law of armed conflict.

Neither the U.S. mission in Geneva nor Iran’s mission immediately responded to requests for comment on Thursday’s U.N. findings, according to Reuters. The fact-finding panel said requests it sent to the United States in June also went unanswered. That leaves unresolved whether Washington disputes the attribution, the panel’s legal analysis or both.

The report is likely to intensify demands in Congress and abroad for the Pentagon to disclose its targeting review, the intelligence used before the strikes and any disciplinary or procedural changes. A Human Rights Council debate can generate diplomatic pressure and preserve evidence, but the council cannot prosecute cases or compel the United States to cooperate.

Separate findings against Iran

The mission also concluded that Iranian authorities committed crimes against humanity during their suppression of protests, including murder, torture, arbitrary detention and enforced disappearance. Its assessment drew on interviews with 73 people, documents, satellite imagery, photographs, videos and material from credible organizations and experts, according to the Associated Press’s account.

Iranian authorities report 3,038 people killed and 25,000 injured in the unrest, while the mission said the true toll is likely higher. The panel also warned that more than 70 people face an imminent risk of execution. Tehran has rejected allegations of systematic abuse and did not answer dozens of mission requests for information.

Those findings are legally and factually distinct from the mission’s conclusions about U.S. strikes. The report does not treat abuses by one side as justification for violations by another. Instead, it presents a dual finding: Iranian authorities may be responsible for a broad campaign of repression, while U.S. forces may have unlawfully attacked protected civilian sites.

What happens next

The immediate test is whether the United States releases the Pentagon investigation and addresses the U.N. evidence in detail. The Human Rights Council’s consideration on Monday could also determine whether the mission’s mandate is extended and whether its evidence-preservation work continues.

For now, the U.N. conclusion stands as an investigative finding, not a judgment. But its specificity — two identified sites, attributed weapons effects and a stated legal theory — sharply raises the stakes for Washington. A public U.S. accounting would be the clearest way to resolve the central questions the mission says remain unanswered.