Iran condemns ‘barbaric’ US attack near children’s cancer hospital

What Happened

On Thursday, US strikes hit near Shahid Baghaei Specialised Hospital, a children’s cancer facility in Ahvaz, southwestern Iran. Hospital staff reported an intense blast so close they believed the hospital itself was struck, forcing the emergency evacuation of 211 patients, including children on oxygen and ventilators. Hospital director Reza Bazar said the attacks rendered the hospital out of service. Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei condemned the strike as a ‘barbaric’ and ‘cowardly war crime’, likening it to Israeli targeting of healthcare in Gaza, and Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi accused Washington of war crimes. The US did not comment on the hospital strike but confirmed a new wave of attacks on Iran that day. Iran separately claimed to have targeted US military sites in Jordan and Kuwait. The incident occurs amid an almost five-month-old conflict, with President Trump threatening strikes on Iranian power plants and bridges if Tehran does not resume talks, and Iran warning of reciprocal attacks on civilian infrastructure in Gulf states.

Key Actors

Why It Matters

The reported proximity of a US strike to a children’s cancer hospital, forcing the displacement of critically ill patients, intensifies accusations of war crimes and deepens the humanitarian toll of the US-Iran conflict. Iran’s framing of the attack as equivalent to Israeli actions in Gaza risks galvanising regional anti-US sentiment, while its threats to target civilian infrastructure in Gulf nations escalate the risk of a wider, catastrophic war. The incident also complicates diplomatic backchannels, as it occurs amid US ultimatums and Iranian vows of retaliation.

Watch For

US investigation results or any official comment on the hospital strike; Iranian retaliation against civilian infrastructure in Gulf countries; President Trump’s threatened strikes on Iranian power plants and bridges if no talks by next week; potential UN Security Council or International Criminal Court scrutiny of the strike; further displacement of medical facilities in the conflict zone.