In a message posted on his X account on April 1, Baqaei decried the scale and intent of the US-Israeli attacks, pointing to the repeated targeting of schools and public facilities over the past several weeks.
He described the assaults as part of an ongoing pattern of unlawful warfare, arguing that the extent and nature of the violence against civilians go beyond conventional definitions of war crimes and reflect a broader campaign against the Iranian population.
“This is not an isolated act of cruelty—it is part of a systematic and brutal pattern of illegal warfare against Iran,” Baqaei said.
“In the past 33 days, aggressors have deliberately targeted over 600 schools and educational centers, including the Shajareh Tayyebeh School in Minab and the Lamerd Sports Hall,” he said.
“The term ‘war crime’ falls far short of adequately describing these atrocities. Given the explicit rhetoric of hostility toward Iranians (as a nation) expressed by US/ Israeli officials, these crimes amount to genocide,” the Iranian spokesman added.
The US and the Israeli regime launched a large-scale unprovoked military campaign against Iran following the assassination of Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyed Ali Khamenei, along with several senior military commanders and civilians on February 28.
The attacks have involved extensive aerial strikes on both military and civilian locations across Iran, causing significant casualties and widespread damage to infrastructure.
In response, the Iranian Armed Forces have carried out retaliatory operations, targeting American and Israeli positions in the occupied territories and at regional bases with waves of missiles and drones.