‘After attacks by their own regime, Iranian students are now affected by Israeli and American bombs’

The United States and Israel declared war on Iran at the end of February. The attacks had been prepared (in Dutch) for months after rising tensions (in Dutch) between the countries, in part because of Iran’s nuclear programme and its support of Hezbollah.

“At first only the military and political targets were attacked,” says Peyman Jafari, who came to the Netherlands as an Iranian refugee as a child. He is now Assistant Professor of History and International Relations at the William & Mary University in the United States and is connected to the International Institute of Social History in Amsterdam.

“But after a few days, civilian and economic destinations were also targeted. Important amenities for ordinary citizens were hit. They include hospitals, schools, industries, as well as universities.”

Why were universities targeted?

“The objective was probably to obstruct Iran economically. Iranian universities are good at science and technology. They are relatively high on the world rankings. The technical universities are important for the oil and steel industry for example. These are highly developed industries that enable Iran to function independently.”

‘Lecture theatres, laboratories, libraries, data centres and other buildings have been damaged’

“Another important purpose is intimidation. Iran is proud that it has so many high ranking universities and that it is a developed country. By bombing universities, Trump hopes to break Iran’s morale.”

Are these universities also used for military purposes, such as building rockets?

“That is indeed what Trump and Netanyahu say. They say that it concerns dual use: knowledge that can be used for both civilian and military purposes. But this does not mean that universities should be attacked just like that. The damage suffered by citizens is greater than the military advantage that would be gained. Attacks like these infringe international law. A lot of Israeli, as well as Dutch, universities have links to the army, but that does not make them a legitimate military target.”

How badly are Iranian universities being affected?

“More than 20 universities have been attacked, including almost all the big universities in Tehran. It is mostly the technical universities that have been bombed heavily as they are part of the economic infrastructure. On top of this, lecture halls, laboratories, libraries, data centres and other buildings have been damaged. The Technological University of Sharif, often called the MIT of Iran, was also attacked.”

What does this mean for students?

“Students are traumatised. Last week all lessons had to be done online. The lecture halls have been blown up. They had heavy bombing every evening for six weeks. Even if you are not injured you suffer. The students, who were previously attacked by their own regime, are now being affected by Israeli and American bombs.”

Could this play into the hands of the Iranian regime?

“It could, though it is hard to say. There is little contact with Iran as the internet still does not work. But the regime can now say that the Americans do not only want to hit the regime, but the whole country. And students wonder how they can protest when their universities are being attacked. Their struggle is being undermined.”

“The war could create national unity. People want to defend their country, even the people who are against the regime. But they are still also critical. Even during this war the authorities in Iran are still continuing to arrest people. You can be both anti-war as well as anti-regime.”

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How quickly could education resume once there is a peace accord?

“It could take years. Everyone first needs to lick their wounds. A lot of students fled from the city because of the bombs. In the next few weeks people will mostly be mourning and clearing the rubble.”

“The quality of education is being jeopardised. Students are now entering the exam period. This will not be easy. They need to try to concentrate on their exams while the war is felt everywhere.”

Could they then study abroad?

“They would have done so happily, but Trump has put a complete visa stop for Iran and a lot of other countries. These students, simply because they are Iranian, cannot enter the United States to continue their studies. Even in Europe it has become harder for Iranian students to get visas.”

“I think that Iranian students are even more motivated now to rebuild the country. You already see students signing up as volunteers to work on the reconstruction. It may be hard, but they are highly motivated.”

HOP, Naomi Bergshoeff