TEHRAN- An aerial photograph of Minab by Iranian photographer Morteza Hossein-Akhondi has won first place at the “A Look at Life in Wartime” photography festival.

The jury announced three top-winning photographs following its final assessment of the selected entries, Mehr reported on Monday. 

Hossein-Akhondi took first place with his photograph depicting Minab. Hassan Qaedi received second place for a photograph taken in Tehran, while Jamshid Farajvand Farda secured third place with an image from Kordestan.

The first-place photograph had previously earned international recognition, winning the Gold Award in the Editorial/Press category at the Golden Shot Photography Awards 2026 in June. 

The aerial image, taken by Akhondi, depicts the funeral and burial procession of 168 students and teachers killed in the attack on a school in Minab. 

The award-winning photograph provides a bird’s-eye view of a historic and tragic moment, documenting the final farewell to the young victims of a widely condemned crime committed by the US and the Zionist regime. 

In the small city of Minab, the loss of so many young lives was a heavy burden for the community. To honor the victims, a large area of land was turned into a cemetery, with graves dug in neat, endless rows. 

This striking imagery is what makes Akhondi's photograph remarkable. The aerial view shows the haunting arrangement of these small graves, each symbolizing a life lost too soon. Surrounding this solemn site, the entire city gathered in grief, their shared sorrow creating a powerful contrast to the orderly rows of students being laid to rest.

The three winning works were selected from among 50 photographs shortlisted for the festival. The final jury comprised French and Iranian figures with backgrounds in photography, photojournalism, documentary filmmaking, art history, exhibition curation and international cultural activities.

The jury members were French photojournalist Michel Setboun, Iranian documentary filmmaker and photographer Mehrdad Oskouei, French writer, photographer and art historian Guillaume de Sardes, Iranian photographer and visual artist Maryam Rahmanian, and Baktash Hosseinimanesh, who has experience in international activities between Iran and France.

Setboun is a prominent figure in French photojournalism, with decades of experience documenting international events and conflicts. Oskouei is an internationally recognized documentary filmmaker and researcher whose work also includes the history of photography. De Sardes is a writer, photographer, art historian and exhibition curator, while Rahmanian is active in photography and visual arts. Hosseinimanesh has been involved in cultural and international exchanges between Iran and France.

The first-place winner will receive the festival's trophy, a commemorative plaque and a cash prize. The second- and third-place winners will also receive commemorative plaques and cash awards.

In addition to the three prize-winning photographs, 47 other selected works will be recognized with official certificates of participation and jury commendation plaques. All 50 photographs will be presented in exhibitions in Paris.

The first exhibition is running from November 5 to 18, while a second exhibition is scheduled to take place in Paris during December.

The festival's artistic director is Mohammadreza Keyvanfar, a photographer, documentary filmmaker and photography and cinema instructor. Seyyed Vahid Yaghoubi serves as its executive secretary.

SAB/