Air Delivered event in Iran, Islamic Republic of on Fri 27th March 2026

Iran is threatening military strikes on US universities in the Gulf states and Middle East in retaliation for attacks on Iranian universities carried out in the past few days. Fars News, an Iranian news site, reported that Isfahan University of Technology was bombed on Wednesday and Iran University of Science and Technology, or IUST, was hit by a strike on Friday. “If the US government wants its universities in the region to be free from retaliation… it must condemn the bombing of the universities in an official statement by 12 noon on Monday, March 30, Tehran time,” the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, or IRGC, said in a statement published by Tasnim News. It said that, following the bombing of IUST, “all universities of the occupying regime [that is, Israel] and American universities in the West Asia region will be legitimate targets for us until two universities are struck in retaliation for the destroyed Iranian universities”. The statement added: “We advise all employees, professors, and students of American universities in the region and residents of their surrounding areas to stay a kilometre away from the mentioned universities to protect their lives.” There are numerous American universities and American branch campuses in the Gulf and Middle East region, including six in Qatar’s Education City and three in the UAE. US universities in Education City include Virginia Commonwealth University, Weill Cornell Medical College, Texas A&M University, Carnegie Mellon University, Georgetown University, and Northwestern University. Education City serves thousands of students from more than 85 countries. The US university branch campuses in the UAE include Georgetown University – Dubai, RIT Dubai (Rochester Institute of Technology) and Northwood University-RAK in Ras Al Khaimah. In addition, the UAE is home to the American University in Dubai and the American University of Sharjah. Kuwait hosts the American University of Kuwait and the American University of the Middle East and Bahrain hosts the American University of Bahrain. There are other American universities elsewhere in the region, in Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, Iraq and Palestine. Francisco Marmelojo, president of Higher Education, Qatar Foundation, told University World News: “We strongly condemn all attacks on educational institutions, whether in Qatar or anywhere in the world, which threaten the universal right to education.” He said the safety and wellbeing of our students, faculty, and staff remain the highest priority and are in full alignment with official guidance from Qatari authorities, and the Qatar Foundation has “activated its well-rehearsed contingency plans to address any potential threats”. He said the six “US partner universities located on the Education City campus began conducting classes remotely from 29 March until further notice.” He said Education City is home to more than 4,400 university students from over 110 countries, and comprehensive academic, personal, and logistical support remains in place for our community. “Whether delivered in person, or online, student support will continue without interruption, and learning outcomes will be met. We are grateful for the resilience and cooperation of our students, families, faculty, and staff as we navigate this period together.” Safety and security advice on the Qatar Foundation website says alerts will be communicated to staff via public announcement phone message alerts. “Upon receiving the alerts, move away from glass, doors, and outer walls to avoid injury from shattered glass or structural damage. “Seek nearest safe shelters, such as stairwells, basement levels, or underground parking structures with emergency access.” The American University of Beirut, in an announcement by the Office of the President on its website on Sunday, said: “We learned early this morning of threats issued against American universities in the region.” It had no evidence of direct threats against the university but, as a precautionary measure, moved all operations fully online for Monday and Tuesday, except for essential personnel. “Accordingly, there will be no instructional activities or exams on campus during these two days.”