Top University in Iran Bombed

Early this morning, Sharif University of Technology, Iran’s leading technical university, was bombed. As of the writing of this post, it was unclear whether the bombing was carried out by the United States or Israel or both. Neither has claimed responsibility for the attack on the university, according to The New York Times. It is not the first Iranian university to have been bombed in the recent attacks by the US and Israel. “At least 30 universities have been hit,” according to Iran’s Ministry of Science and Technology, reports Al Jazeera. Referred to by some as “Iran’s MIT”, Sharif University is the alma mater of many distinguished alumni, including Maryam Mirzakhani, the first woman ever to win the Fields Medal (akin to the Noble Prize) in mathematics. Atoosa Kasirzadeh, a philosopher at Carnegie Mellon University, writes: “What makes this scene especially poignant is that Sharif was not only a center of technical education. It also housed a Department of Philosophy of Science, an extraordinary effort to [build a] bridge between philosophy, science, and technology.” She shared the following photos: The Times says: Intentional attacks on educational institutions could be a war crime under international law. According to state media reports, the school’s information technology center and mosque were targeted… Israeli officials have often argued that the civilian sites they have attacked, such as pharmaceutical or petrochemical facilities, are dual-use, meaning they are also used by security forces for economic gain or developing materials that can be used militarily. Some student groups active in antigovernment protests this year have suggested that certain Iranian campuses had dual-use research facilities. The Amirkabir student newsletter on Monday said parts of the Sharif University campus that were attacked were used for drone research. Experts say international law stipulates that strikes on dual-use sites are prohibited if they are “expected to cause” damage to civilian life or property that exceed anticipated military gains. The military must also work to minimize damage and harm to civilians if such an attack is launched. It is being reported that 34 people were killed during bombings on various locations in Iran today; it is unclear how many of them were killed specifically in the attack on the university. Further information here and here. The post Top University in Iran Bombed first appeared on Daily Nous.