TEHRAN – Iran and Russia have sent a joint letter to the UNESCO Director-General Khaled El-Enany protesting damage to civilian infrastructure and cultural heritage in Tehran following airstrikes. 

Ahmad Pakatchi, ambassador and permanent representative of the Islamic Republic of Iran to the UN cultural body, along with Russia’s envoy Rinat Alyautdinov, submitted an urgent letter outlining what they described as destructive consequences of the [US-Israeli] attacks, IRNA reported on Saturday. 

The letter cited documentation indicating that an area near the Saint Nicholas Orthodox Cathedral in Tehran was hit during missile strikes on the morning of April 1, 2026. The cathedral, designed by Russian architect Nikolai Markov and listed on Iran’s national heritage register, sustained structural damage.

The envoys said the explosions caused widespread shattering of windows and destruction of doors at the religious site. A neighboring building used as a Russian retirement home also suffered severe damage, including a partial roof collapse, according to the letter.

The letter noted the incident occurred during Lent and ahead of Easter, underscoring the religious significance of the site.

Pakatchi and Alyautdinov said targeting areas near cultural sites and civilian humanitarian infrastructure constituted a violation of international humanitarian law, particularly the Hague Convention of 1954.

The two diplomats condemned what they described as military actions by the United States and the regime of Israel against Iran and warned that such attacks threatened cultural identity and regional stability.

They called on UNESCO’s Director-General to formally condemn the incidents and support international efforts to prevent further damage to cultural property and protect religious and historical heritage 
In the span of just over a month, from February 28 to April 8, more than 130 cultural sites, museums, and historical monuments across Iran were damaged or destroyed, largely as a result of the massive shockwaves caused by airstrikes.
In early March, the Golestan Palace in downtown Tehran, a UNESCO World Heritage site, along with a number of other historical sites nearby, was severely damaged by debris and the shock wave following an airstrike. The palace complex, one of Iran’s most significant historical monuments, suffered damage to arches, wooden doors and windows, stained-glass panels, among others. 

Taken together, Tehran and Isfahan account for more than 64 percent of all documented cases. When provinces such as Khuzestan and Kordestan are added, the concentration rises to over 80 percent. The clustering is difficult to ignore: the damage appears focused on areas where historical density is greatest, where monuments, museums, and historic urban fabrics converge.

The largest group of damage properties consists of historical houses and residential mansions, which is 33 in total. They are structures that often form the backbone of historic neighborhoods. Civic and institutional buildings follow, along with mosques, palaces, bathhouses, mills, and fortifications.

AM