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| Military experts say the scale and spread of the damage observed in Resalat is consistent with the use of a powerful bomb called the Mark 84 (Image: BBC) |
As the rubble falls, a mother cries out for her daughter. In Resalat, a residential area in the eastern part of Tehran, she has been waiting for rescue workers to demolish the flattened remains of her daughter's home for days. The woman asserts, "They don't have the manpower to get her out." "She's afraid of the dark, my daughter is under the rubble." Iran has been at war for a month with Israel and the United States, who have been bombing targets in the country that are associated with the regime. However, these attacks are also wreaking havoc on the nearby population of civilians. They are now being caught between bombardment from the skies and a repressive regime that responded to anti-establishment protests with a deadly crackdown in January.
BBC Eye has gathered exclusive footage from independent journalists in Tehran ever since the war began.
READ MORE: Why did US and Israel attack Iran and how long could the war last?
Since the start of the war, the BBC has not been permitted entry into Iran. We have examined footage from social media and satellite imagery, filmed the aftermath of strikes, and collected testimony from eyewitnesses. Our analysis shows there has been a series of attacks on state-linked targets that are embedded in civilian neighbourhoods in Tehran, with deadly consequences for those living around them.
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| Airbus and google maps (Image: BBC) |
Dozens of families had lived in the multi-storey apartment building in Resalat before it was destroyed by an Israeli air strike on 9 March.
With her husband and her own young daughter, the daughter trapped in the rubble had been living in the complex. She and her daughter were discovered dead beneath the rubble days after the strike. The husband survived.
Another apartment building, across the road, was also destroyed in the air strike.
The strike, according to a 55-year-old resident of the building, was "so sudden" and "thrown across the room." He asserts that the rubble has submerged everything he owns. "I don't have anything now... everything, including my documents, is gone." According to residents and local authorities, this single attack resulted in the deaths of 40 to 50 people. The homeless are currently staying in a nearby hotel. The man continues, "This was our life." The Iranian Basij, a paramilitary group affiliated with Iran's Revolutionary Guards, uses a military building that was targeted by the Israel Defense Forces, according to the BBC World Service. But analysis of the aftermath suggests the impact extended far beyond that single site.
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| A man whose apartment was damaged said he was "thrown across the room" when the strike hit (Image: BBC) |
At least four buildings were destroyed in a short period of time, according to satellite images taken in the days following the strike. Although it was widely known that one belonged to the Basij, the surrounding structures appear to have been homes. Footage from the scene, verified by BBC Eye, shows widespread destruction across the neighbourhood. Our analysis indicates that buildings up to 65m away were heavily damaged by the blast.
Additionally, residents report multiple explosions that occurred in quick succession. One survivor claims, "They hit three times." "I tried to stand up, but the rubble came down on my head," she said. "Maybe three or five seconds between them." According to military experts interviewed by BBC Eye, the Israeli air force is most likely using particularly large bombs from the Mark 80 series that are frequently equipped with precision guidance systems to attack Tehran.
They went on to say that the scale and spread of the damage in Resalat are consistent with the Mark 84 being used, which is the largest of the series and weighs 2,000 pounds (907 kilograms). In the city, images of these kinds of unexploded bombs have been taken. The UN has previously urged countries and armed groups at war to avoid using powerful bombs in highly populated areas because of the danger to civilian lives.
According to two experts on international humanitarian law who spoke with BBC Eye, using such a powerful bomb in a densely populated area would be disproportionate and possibly illegal, given the potential harm to civilians.
Resalat is not the only instance. The Israel Defense Forces claimed to have dropped over 12,000 bombs on Iran and 3,600 on Tehran alone since the conflict began. The United States Central Command claims to have hit more than 9,000 targets in Iran.
Many of these US and Israeli strikes have targeted police stations, Basij militia buildings, police headquarters, military and police universities, safe houses, Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) homes, as well as potential ammunition stores and checkpoints.
These targets frequently reside in populated civilian neighborhoods. The Abbasabad police station near Niloufar Square, where families had gathered after breaking their Ramadan fast, was the target of an Israeli strike on March 1. Although the BBC has not verified this number, eyewitnesses claim to have witnessed at least 20 deaths. Multiple explosions were followed by a "terrifying light," according to witnesses. One man stated, "We ran into the street." "A man and a woman had just come out of a shop… they were hit immediately."
The same target was hit multiple times, according to residents. Another witness commented, "It wasn't even two minutes." "They struck once more when we returned." The IDF stated that it "struck a military target" to confirm that it was the one who carried out the attack. Similar to Resalat, the blast zone's BBC Eye analysis suggests that the damage extended far beyond the designated target. All parties to a conflict are required to make a distinction between civilian and military objectives under international humanitarian law. The anticipated harm to civilians or buildings must be proportional to the anticipated military advantage that will result from that specific action. Additionally, both sides must try to avoid locating military targets in or near densely populated areas. In the first month of the conflict, 1,464 civilians, including at least 217 children, have been killed in Iran, according to the Human Rights Activists News Agency (HRANA) based in the United States. Residents told BBC Eye that strikes hitting residential areas risk deepening resentment, even among those who had previously been critical of the Iranian regime.
The BBC asked the IDF about the incidents in this report. It confirmed the strikes but made no further comment. The US Department of Defense did not respond.
During the war, Iran has also attacked residential and civilian infrastructure, including hotels and airports, in Gulf states allied with Washington. In Tehran, residents criticised the Iranian authorities for their response to the war.
According to what they told the BBC, there had been very little visible provision of basic safety measures, such as public shelters, assistance with the evacuation, or temporary housing for those who had been displaced. Several of the people we talked to said that they had not been given any direction regarding where to go or how to defend themselves against attacks. One local claimed, "There are no sirens, no warnings." "Just the sound of the explosion." Many people said they felt exposed and uncertain due to the ongoing internet blackout and the lack of clear communication. They weren't sure when or where the next strike might come. In response to the attacks, the Iranian government has not publicly described any national civil defense protocols. Israel and the United States claim to be targeting the Iranian state's infrastructure. However, the effects are being felt far beyond the stated targets in a city where this infrastructure is adjacent to homes, shops, and schools. That pressure is reflected in the loss of homes, broken families, and a growing sense that nowhere is truly safe for those who are living through it.
Source: BBC
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