US also massacred 24 Iranian civilians in Lamerd sports hall on Feb. 28: FM spox

The United States proved its utter disregard for human life and international law by carrying out a deliberate and barbaric missile strike on a civilian sports hall in the city of Lamerd in Fars Province during the 40-day war against Iran, martyring 24 innocent Iranians and injuring over 130 others.

Iran’s Foreign Ministry Spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei revealed the harrowing details of this American war crime after holding a meeting with Dr. Mousa Mousavi, the Member of Parliament for Mehr and Lamerd.

The assault took place on the afternoon of Saturday, February 28, the very same day US Tomahawk missiles massacred 168 schoolchildren at the Shajareh Tayyibeh School in Minab.

According to the briefing, American forces fired Precision Strike Missiles (PrSM) at a residential neighborhood in Lamerd, directly hitting a sports hall filled with civilians, including teenage volleyball players, women, men, and a helpless two-year-old girl.

The “airburst” warheads exploded in mid-air, raining down a lethal storm of 180,000 high-velocity tungsten pellets that tore through everything in their path with ruthless efficiency.

There is no longer any doubt that this was not an accident, not “collateral damage,” but a premeditated decision by the US regime to test its new weapon system on Iranian civilians in a residential area.

Such a cold-blooded act constitutes a clear and despicable war crime, Baghaei stated firmly.

He added that those who ordered and executed this massacre must be brought before competent courts of law and held fully accountable for their crimes against humanity.

The Iranian nation grieves its martyred pure-hearted children, promising young athletes, and ordinary citizens whose only sin was living proudly under the flag of the Islamic Republic.

“The Iranian nation will never forget its martyred sons and daughters. We will neither forget nor forgive this crime,” Baghaei stated.

The criminal US-Israeli aggression against Iran began on February 28 with airstrikes that assassinated senior Iranian officials and commanders, including the Leader of the Islamic Revolution, Ayatollah Seyyed Ali Khamenei. The US also killed 168 children and teachers in airstrikes on the Minab School in southern Iran on the first day of the war.

EU parliamentarian calls for investigation into US-Israeli massacre of Minab schoolgirls

A European parliamentarian calls for an investigation into the Minab school massacre.

Iranian Armed Forces responded by launching daily missile and drone operations targeting locations in the Israeli-occupied territories as well as US military bases and assets across the region.

Iran also shut down the Strait of Hormuz to its enemies and their allies following the unprovoked aggression.

On April 8, forty days into the war, a Pakistan-brokered temporary ceasefire between Iran and the US took effect and was later extended unilaterally by Washington.

Press TV’s website can also be accessed at the following alternate addresses:

www.presstv.co.uk