The US-Israel war on Iran has produced violations of international humanitarian law across all parties. This piece documents them all. The United States struck a school full of girls. Israel has violated Lebanon's ceasefire over 10,000 times. Iran used cluster munitions on Israeli civilians and massacred its own protesters. Accountability requires applying the same standard to everyone.
The United States entered the war on Iran on February 28, 2026 — while US-Iran nuclear negotiations in Geneva were actively progressing, with Oman confirming the previous day that talks had made "significant progress." The strikes, code-named Operation Epic Fury, were planned for months with a launch date fixed weeks in advance. The following incidents have been documented by independent human rights organizations:
These incidents did not occur in a vacuum. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth publicly dismissed what he called "stupid rules of engagement" and emphasized "maximum lethality, not tepid legality." He dismantled 90% of civilian harm mitigation teams, removed senior military lawyers, abolished "civilian environment teams," and ordered the Army, Navy and Air Force judge advocates general replaced. He also publicly threatened that "no quarter" would be given to Iranians — a statement that is itself a war crime under the Geneva Conventions, which prohibit ordering or threatening no quarter. The pattern of civilian strikes is not incidental. The guardrails were deliberately removed.
Israel has violated multiple Lebanon ceasefires in succession — treating each agreement as a temporary operational pause rather than a binding commitment. The violations span aerial incursions, ground operations, assassinations, demolitions of civilian homes, and attacks on Lebanese military and rescue workers.
Iran's violations fall into two distinct categories: its military conduct in the external conflict with Israel and the US, and its domestic repression of its own citizens. Both are documented here.
Lebanon ceasefire violations — documented record
Netanyahu stated Israel was "maintaining full freedom of action against any threat" during the April 2026 ceasefire. The ceasefire text includes language allowing Israel to act in "self-defense" against "planned, imminent, or ongoing attacks" — a clause Israel defines broadly enough to justify almost any strike. A ceasefire with unlimited self-defense carve-outs is not a ceasefire. It is a rebranding of occupation.
All sources are publicly available. Research collated by T. Denoyo with the assistance of Claude (Anthropic). Published April 30, 2026. This site does not represent the views of any employer or institution.