TEHRAN – In a symbolic gesture to globalize the voice of innocent victims, the backpacks of two Iranian students martyred in the tragic bombing of the Shajareh Tayyebeh School in Minab have been dispatched to the United Nations headquarters in New York and its museum in Vienna. 

Hamed Alamati, the director of the Iran's Institute for Intellectual Development of Children and Young Adults (IIDCYA), announced on Saturday that the personal belongings of martyrs Moein Zeinali and Mohammad Shahdousti were sent as part of the "Caravan of Narrating 20 Years of Failure," Mehr reported. 

The initiative follows the devastating aerial bombardment of the school in Minab, Hormozgan province, which resulted in the martyrdom of over 168 children and teachers. The backpacks, which still bear the silent stories of daily school life, are intended to serve as a testament to the oppression and innocence of children caught in one of the most bitter recent atrocities.

“A backpack is a symbol of the everyday life and innocence of children who packed their books and notebooks every morning to head to school,” Alamati stated. He added that with the coordination of the victims' families, one backpack was sent to the UN headquarters in New York while the other is destined for the UN Museum in Vienna.

The transfer of these artifacts was facilitated through Asadollah Eshraq Jahromi, Iran’s Ambassador to Austria. By placing these items in high-profile international venues, Iranian officials aim to bring the tragedy of the Minab school bombing to the forefront of the global human rights discourse, ensuring the martyred students are remembered beyond Iran’s borders.

On February 28, the Shajareh Tayyebeh girls' elementary school in Minab, Hormozgan province, became the site of a devastating massacre as the United States and Israel initiated their strikes against Iran. 

While dozens of girls and boys aged between 7 and 12 were beginning their lessons, the school was targeted by a missile strike that caused the building to collapse, trapping children and teachers beneath the rubble. Iranian authorities confirmed a final death toll of 168 people, with at least 95 others wounded, marking one of the most harrowing incidents of the conflict's opening day.

Despite attempts by US and Israeli authorities to distance themselves from the carnage as images of the tragedy spread across social media, detailed forensic and digital investigations have painted a starkly different picture. 

An analysis by Al Jazeera’s digital investigations unit, utilizing over a decade of satellite imagery and recent video clips, revealed that the school was a clearly distinct civilian facility, separated from any adjacent military sites for at least ten years. Furthermore, witness accounts and satellite-based analyses confirmed that the school was triple tapped by three separate, deliberate strikes, leaving no doubt about the nature of the attack.

The international community has faced mounting evidence regarding the responsibility for this atrocity, with investigations from major global outlets including The New York Times, BBC Verify, CBC, and NPR all concluding that the United States was responsible for the strike. 

These findings have raised fundamental questions about the intelligence used to justify the bombing, as the patterns of the strike suggest a direct targeting of a civilian educational institution. The Minab school tragedy now stands as a somber testament to the immense human cost of the aggression and a focal point for those demanding international accountability.

SAB/