Iranian children return to school under shadow of US-Israel war

September 28, 2026 at 01:25 PM3 min

This digest was compiled by AI from multiple sources — links to the originals are below.

Iranian children returned to classrooms last week for the new school year, but in southern provinces including Minab, classes remain online for the first two weeks due to the threat of renewed US bombing. The Shajareh-ye Tayyebeh Elementary School in Minab, bombed on the first day of the US-Israel war on Iran, killing 120 children, still lies in ruins. Parents across Iran describe lingering anxiety as they drop off their children at school.

Key Facts

The Shajareh-ye Tayyebeh Elementary School in Minab was bombed on the first day of the US-Israel war on Iran, killing 120 children and 35 adults.
A new building has been constructed in place of the destroyed school, but students attend for only about an hour to hear the bell ring for the start of the new school year.
In Iran's southern provinces, including Minab, classes at schools and universities will remain online for the first two weeks due to the threat of renewed US bombing.
The US and Israel launched their war on Iran on February 28, leading to the closure of all schools in Iran as surprise air raids were carried out.
Faramarz, a 39-year-old teacher from Minab, lost his wife and one of his children in the school attack.

Minab School Bombing

The Shajareh-ye Tayyebeh Elementary School in Minab was bombed on the first day of the United States-Israel war on Iran, killing 120 children and 35 adults. The school was starting the school week on the Saturday that the bombing began, and students were being evacuated when a double-tap US strike near the school occurred. A new building has been built in its place, but the school day is short, with students attending for just an hour or so to hear the bell ring for the start of the new school year. People visited the school in Minab on August 27, 2026, three months after it was damaged in the air strike.

Return to Classrooms

Children began returning to classrooms last week for the start of the school year for in-person learning. Online learning has been the medium of schooling since the US and Israel launched their war on February 28. In Iran's southern provinces, including Minab, classes at schools and universities will remain online for the first two weeks due to the threat of renewed US bombing. When the war started, all schools in Iran were closed as US and Israeli jets carried out surprise air raids on the country.

Parental Anxiety

Meysam, the father of an 11-year-old in Tehran, said he cannot shake the anxiety that if the war starts again and the school calls to pick up his child, it will take him a long time to reach the school. Hossein, the father of a first-grade student in Tehran, said he could not shake the thought that the war might start again and a missile could hit the school as he dropped his child off for the first day. Faramarz, a 39-year-old teacher from Minab, lost his wife and one of his children in the school attack and said he lives with a lump in his throat. Parents across Iran remember their cars crawling through traffic-jammed roads as they tried to reach their children and repeated calls they made to the schools for information.