US Edition
Iran’s soccer team honors victims of deadly missile strike on elementary school
Iran’s national team honored more than 165 victims of a Feb. 28 school missile strike by holding backpacks and wearing black armbands during a friendly against Nigeria.
- On Friday, Iran's men's national soccer team wore black armbands and held small pink and purple schoolbags during their national anthem before a friendly match against Nigeria in Turkey, staging a collective protest honoring victims of a deadly elementary school strike.
- A deadly February 28 strike on the Shajareh Tayyebeh elementary school in Minab, Iran, killed more than 165 people, mostly children. Iranian officials blame the United States and Israel for the attack, though neither country has accepted responsibility.
- Mehdi Mohammad Nabi, vice president of the Iranian football federation, said the players collectively decided to stage the protest. "They were deeply affected by the bombing of the girls' school and wanted to express their sympathy," Nabi said through a translator.
- U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Turk urged Washington on Friday to conclude its investigation into the strike and publish findings. "There must be justice for the terrible harm done," Turk said at a Human Rights Council meeting.
- Iran's World Cup participation remains uncertain amid safety concerns, as President Donald Trump discouraged the team from attending matches in the United States. FIFA officials continue discussions regarding the tournament, which remains scheduled to proceed with matches in the U.S.
60 Articles
60 Articles
National Post
Iran footballers pay tribute to victims of school strike
The Iran men's national team wore black armbands and posed with school rucksacks as the national anthem played before a match with Nigeria to remember the victims of a strike on a primary school in Iran on the first day of the Middle East war.
Empty ranks, political messages and an open World Cup participation: football did not play the leading role in Iran's defeat against Nigeria. Players used the game to commemorate the victims of a devastating missile attack.
Iran's National Men's Team paid tribute on Friday night, during the anthems, to the dozens of victims of an air strike attributed to the United States against a primary school on 28 February, on the first day of the war in the Middle East.
The Iranian football team appeared with school backpacks during the anthem preceding a friendly in front of Nigeria, in tribute to the girls of the #Minab school, killed in the recent bombing of the #EjeAggressorEpsteiniano pic.twitter.com/xjvMK80mli—Iran Embassy in Spain (@IraninSpain) March 27, 2026The members of the Iran Team, Costa Rica's rival on Tuesday, March 31st in a friendly match, paid a heartfelt tribute to the girls victims of a mis…
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