IRAN PLAYERS HONOUR SCHOOL STRIKE VICTIMS BEFORE NIGERIA FRIENDLY
Read Time:1 Minute, 20 Second
By ‘Sefiu Ajape
The Iranian men’s national team wore black armbands and posed with school rucksacks as the national anthem played before their match with Nigeria, in tribute to victims of a strike on a primary school in Iran on the first day of the Middle East war.
The airstrike on the school in the southern Iranian city of Minab on February 28 killed at least 170 people, including students and teachers. The incident occurred on the same day the United States and Israel launched attacks across Iran.
Ahead of kick-off in their friendly against Nigeria in Belek, Turkey, Iran players—including former FC Porto and Inter Milan striker Mehdi Taremi—held pink and purple school bags adorned with ribbons.
Iran went on to lose the match 2-1.
Iran’s foreign minister on Friday accused the United States of a “calculated, phased assault” on the school.
According to The New York Times, preliminary findings from a US military investigation suggest that a US Tomahawk cruise missile struck the school due to a targeting error.
The report stated that the US military had been striking a nearby Iranian base, of which the school building was formerly a part, with target coordinates set using outdated data.
US President Donald Trump initially suggested that Iran itself may have been responsible—despite the country not possessing Tomahawk missiles.
Iran, which has qualified for this summer’s World Cup finals, has requested that its matches be relocated from the United States to Mexico after Trump warned that players’ “life and safety” could be at risk if they participate.
Happy
0 %
Sad
0 %
Excited
0 %
Sleepy
0 %
Angry
0 %
Surprise
0 %
0
0