Iran’s Foreign Minister, Abbas Araghchi, on Friday described the February 28 strike on an elementary school in Tehran’s Minab as a “deliberate, intentional” and “calculated” attack by the United States and Israel, AFP reported.

Speaking at an urgent debate at the United Nations Human Rights Council, he added that 175 students and teachers had been “slaughtered in cold blood”.

Attending via video conferencing, Araghchi said that the incident was a war crime and a crime against humanity, demanding “unequivocal condemnation” and “unambiguous accountability” for those responsible.

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Here are more top updates from the conflict in West Asia:

  • The Iranian leader added that the atrocity could not be justified or ignored. “The United States’ contradictory remarks aimed at justifying their crime could not, in any manner, elude their responsibility,” he said.
  • Volker Turk, chief of the UN Human Rights Council, said that the bombing evoked “visceral horror” and insisted on the need for justice, reported AFP.
  • Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps said on Friday that the Strait of Hormuz had been closed and warned that any transit through the waterway would face “harsh measures”. It added that the strait was “closed” to vessels travelling to and from “enemy ports”, and that three ships attempting to cross had been turned back, The Times of Israel reported.
  • “This morning… three container ships of different nationalities were turned back after a warning from the IRGC Navy,” the revolutionary guards was quoted as saying by Sepah News website. It claimed that the ships had attempted to cross “following the lies of the US president” that the strait was open.
  • United States President Donald Trump on Thursday said that he was once again postponing the deadline for Iran to fully open the Strait of Hormuz to shipping or face strikes on its power plants. Citing ongoing talks with Tehran to end the conflict, the president said that he would hold off for 10 more days before targeting the plants.
  • “As per Iranian Government request, please let this statement serve to represent that I am pausing the period of Energy Plant destruction by 10 Days to Monday, April 6, 2026…” he said on social media. This is the second time that Trump has postponed his deadline. He first announced Washington’s intention to strike the plants on March 21 and gave Iran 48 hours to open up the strait. Two days later, he extended this deadline to Friday.
  • Iran has repeatedly denied that any negotiations are taking place to end the conflict and has claimed that the Trump administration’s statements were aimed at trying to calm international markets, The New York Times reported.
  • Trump’s extensions come amid Iran effectively blocking the Strait of Hormuz, the narrow waterbody connecting the Gulf to the Arabian Sea, for most international commercial vessels since the start of the conflict. About 20% of global petroleum supply passes through the maritime chokepoint.
  • On Thursday, India’s External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar and his French counterpart Jean-Noel Barrot discussed the security of the Strait of Hormuz on the sidelines of the G7 meeting in France. “The ministers held extensive discussions on the situation in the Middle East,” the French readout of their meeting said. “They agreed to continue their close coordination with a view to working jointly towards ensuring the security of the Strait of Hormuz.”
  • This came as Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said that Tehran has allowed “friendly countries”, including India, to pass the Strait of Hormuz amid the conflict in West Asia. Araghchi said that the other countries were China, Russia, Iraq and Pakistan, the Iranian consulate general in Mumbai stated on social media.
  • The Israeli military has said that it had completed a “wide-scale wave of strikes” targeting government infrastructure in Tehran early on Friday, The New York Times reported. Iran had earlier launched strikes at Israel, the newspaper quoted Iranian state television as saying. Israelis were directed to shelter in place and soon after were released. No casualties were reported.
  • The Indian stock market fell on Friday. As of 10.55 am, the benchmark Sensex index had dropped by more than 955 points or 1.2%. The Nifty dropped by 1.24%, or by more than 288 points. However, the India VIX index, which measures volatility in the market, was up by 1.8%.
  • Major Asian stock indices were mixed on Friday. South Korea’s Kospi had fallen 0.59%, Japan’s Nikkei 0.02% while China’s Shanghai Composite was up by 0.72% and Hong Kong’s Hang Seng index rose by 0.7%, at 10.50 am Indian time.

The conflict

The US and Israel launched an attack on Iran on February 28, claiming that Tehran’s action posed an existential threat to Israel. Washington acts as a guarantor of Israel’s security. Iran has retaliated by striking Israel and US military bases in the region, and targeting major cities in Gulf countries and some ships.

Israel has been claiming that Iran is close to obtaining a nuclear weapon, which could alter the regional security balance. Tehran has long maintained that its nuclear programme is for civilian purposes.