TEHRAN — In a diplomatic missive that underscores the escalating humanitarian and ecological catastrophe during the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran, Shina Ansari, the head of the Department of Environment, has called upon the United Nations to intervene against what she described as a systematic campaign of "environmental crimes" perpetrated by the aggressors.

The ongoing military aggression has shifted from conventional warfare into a deliberate assault on the biological and atmospheric integrity of the region, Ansari warned in a formal letter to UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres.

The letter, dated March 10, provides a harrowing timeline of the aggression, noting that since the commencement of large-scale military operations on February 28, American and Israeli forces have consistently targeted non-military, civilian infrastructure.

Among the most devastating incidents cited was a strike on an elementary school in Minab, a city in the Hormozgan Province of southern Iran.

It involved multiple missiles in rapid succession, killing 180 civilians—most of whom were children.

This massacre, Tehran asserts, is indicative of a broader strategy that disregards the lives of the most vulnerable and violates the fundamental tenets of international humanitarian law.

The crisis took a definitive environmental turn on the night of March 7, when precision strikes targeted multiple fuel storage facilities in the Tehran metropolitan area.

The resulting infernos sent massive plumes of toxic residues into the sky, releasing a lethal cocktail of hydrocarbon compounds, sulfur oxides, and nitrogen oxides.

Ansari informed the UN chief that these pollutants triggered a state of emergency in Tehran and the neighboring industrial hub of Karaj.

The Department of Environment officially classified the air quality as critical, warning that the dense toxicity poses a "mortal danger" to the elderly and those with chronic cardiovascular or respiratory conditions.

The threat reached a new level of urgency following rainfall on the morning of March 8 in Tehran province.

Experts have warned that the interaction between precipitation and suspended chemical pollutants created a hazardous "acid rain" effect.

This phenomenon threatens to inflict irreversible damage on human pulmonary systems, contaminate the nation’s dwindling water reservoirs, and collapse fragile natural ecosystems.

In response to the atmospheric poisoning, the Department of Environment placed all regional medical centers on full alert and issued a stern advisory for the millions of residents in the capital and Karaj to remain indoors, describing the current outdoor environment as a biohazard zone.

In her letter, Ansari described these strikes as a "blatant violation of international commitments" specifically designed to protect the planet.

She argued that the actions of the U.S. and Israel constitute a direct breach of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change and the Convention on Biological Diversity.

By weaponizing the environment and targeting energy infrastructure that sustains civilian life, the aggressors are accused of engaging in a form of "ecocide" that bypasses traditional battlefield engagement to target the very air and water upon which the Iranian people depend.

The letter reflects a growing sentiment within Tehran that the international community’s rhetoric regarding environmental protection is being exposed as hollow.

While Western capitals often champion global climate initiatives, their direct involvement in the destruction of Iranian infrastructure and the subsequent poisoning of its air reveals a profound and deadly double standard.

Many observers have noted that these strikes are not merely collateral damage but are intended to exert maximum pressure on the civilian population by degrading their living conditions to the point of collapse.

Concluding her appeal, Ansari demanded that the United Nations and its specialized agencies move beyond passive observation and adopt a "decisive and firm position" against these atrocities.

She characterized the military campaign as a "clear crime against the environment and the people of Iran," calling for a formal international mechanism to pursue the legal and criminal responsibility of the perpetrators.