Facilities at Shahid Beheshti University, one of Tehran’s most prestigious universities, were damaged in a US-Israeli strike on Friday, the Iranian Red Crescent and local media reported.
Footage geolocated by CNN shows damaged buildings billowing with smoke as rescuers wade through the rubble.
According to the Red Crescent, the Institute for Laser and Plasma Research was hit, while state television Press TV reported that a women’s dormitory was also damaged. CNN also identified smoke rising from the part of the campus where the institute is located.
Images of the Laser and Plasma Research Institute as well as the girls’ dormitory of Tehran’s Shahid Beheshti University targeted by US airstrikes.
Follow Press TV on Telegram: https://t.co/LWoNSpkc2J pic.twitter.com/kOEUWwXAi5
— Press TV (@PressTV) April 3, 2026
Shahid Beheshti University condemned the attack, calling it an “inhumane” and “anti-scientific” act.
– This hostile act not only threatened the safety of the academic staff and the scientific environment of the country, but also represents a clear attack on reason, research and freedom of thought – it is stated in the statement carried by Mehr News Agency.
The president of the university also reacted after the attack, calling on the Iranian armed forces to “retaliate with maximum force” and “punish the aggressors”, the news agency reported.
US and Israel attacked Shahid Beheshti university in Tehran, including a women’s dormitory. – Iranian state media reports #Iranwar #ShahidBeheshti #university pic.twitter.com/VGTv1hkDnx
— Chaudhary Parvez (@ChaudharyParvez) April 3, 2026
Iranian universities have increasingly been the target of attacks in the past week, which Tehran interprets as an attempt to weaken the country’s scientific and cultural foundations, while Israel presents it as part of a broader strategy aimed at limiting Iran’s nuclear program.
In response to these attacks, Tehran has threatened to target US- and Israeli-affiliated universities across the region, which could disrupt higher education in Lebanon, Qatar and other Gulf states.
(Vijesti.ba)
