Iran Red Crescent urges ICC probe into deadly US strike on wedding party

Notably, the Iranian Red Crescent Society has asked the International Criminal Court (ICC) to investigate a missile attack by the United States that hit a wedding party in the southern town of Kuhestak, killing at least four individuals and wounding dozens.

Key points

• While 142 were wounded, iran's Ministry of Health remarked at least 18 residents were killed in Tuesday's strikes.
• Iran's Ministry of Foreign Affairs rejected the claim, with spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei citing past US strikes on civilians in Iraq and Afghanistan.
• Iran's envoy to the United Nations, Gholamhossein Darzi, called on the UN Security Council to condemn the Kuhestak attack.
• Iranian authorities say at least 3, 468 individuals were killed in the initial phase of the war.
• The US Central Command remarked it was aware of the reports concerning the attack in Iranian media, but noted it does not attack civilians.

In a letter to the court on Wednesday, the humanitarian group remarked the attack warrants "an independent, impartial, thorough, and effective investigation" given the "civilian character of the location".

Meanwhile, the strike, which took place at 9: 30pm local time (18: 00 GMT) on Tuesday, killed at least four individuals and wounded 67, the group stated, warning that the number of deaths may growth "given the critical condition of some of the injured".

Those killed were two women and two children, aged four and 16. An Iranian official remarked most of the wounded were additionally women and children.

For context, the Red Crescent remarked the attack could amount to a "war crime", noting that international law prohibits directing attacks against civilians or civilian objects, or launching a strike while knowing it could cause disproportionate civilian harm.

Meanwhile, the US Central Command remarked it was aware of the reports concerning the attack in Iranian media, but noted it does not attack civilians.

Iran's Ministry of Foreign Affairs rejected the claim, with spokesman Esmaeil Baghaei citing past US strikes on civilians in Iraq and Afghanistan. He observed on X that such attacks have additionally been portrayed in US television demonstrates.

"The reality is so horrifying that even American propaganda has never dared make the claim is making today, " he wrote. "Sirik is not a story. The civilians are real. The victims are real."

Neither the US nor Iran are party to the ICC's Rome Statute.

But Dawn, a human rights group, remarked Iran could still accept the court's ad hoc jurisdiction over crimes committed on its territory from a specific date. "By filing such a declaration, set to the beginning of the war, Iran would grant the ICC jurisdiction over every strike on Iranian soil, " the group remarked.

Meanwhile, the strike in Kuhestak came as the US introduced a wave of attacks on Iranian coastal areas near the blockaded Strait of Hormuz, accusing Tehran of attempting to launch strikes against US troops and commercial shipping in the waterway.

While 142 were wounded, iran's Ministry of Health remarked at least 18 residents were killed in Tuesday's strikes. UN pressed to condemn attack.

"The Islamic Republic strongly condemns this horrific and appalling crime, " he wrote, adding that "the deliberate targeting and killing of civilians, including children, constitutes a grave violation of the fundamental rules of international humanitarian law and amounts to a war crime."

Iranian authorities say at least 3, 468 individuals were killed in the initial phase of the war. It began on February 28 and concluded with a ceasefire on April 8. A second round of hostilities, from July 27 to August 24, killed a further 59 individuals and wounded 666.

In practice, the deadliest single attack of the war, in terms of civilian casualties, destroyed an elementary school in Minab on February 28, the war's first day. At least 156 individuals, including 120 children, were killed. A separate strike that day hit a sports hall in Lamerd, killing 21 individuals, including four children.

Over more than six months of war, the US and Israel have additionally struck oil and gas facilities, fuel depots, steel and petrochemical factories, airports, ports, bridges, power installations, medical centres and water facilities throughout Iran.

For now, iran Red Crescent urges ICC probe into deadly US strike on wedding remains the part of the story worth watching, and further updates are likely as more details are confirmed.