The Take: Why Iran says its universities are being targeted
Iran reportedly follows through on threat on US universities, after attacks on two Iranian research universities.
![Children write on a board at a school turned into a shelter for displaced families, following an escalation between Hezbollah and Israel, amid the U.S.-Israeli conflict with Iran, in Beirut, Lebanon, March 17, 2026. [Raghed Waked/Reuters]](/wp-content/uploads/2026/04/2026-03-17T122704Z_771644442_RC296KAF72HP_RTRMADP_3_IRAN-CRISIS-LEBANON-DISPLACED-1775061148.jpg?resize=770%2C513&quality=80)
The war on Iran is spreading into classrooms and campuses. Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) threatened US universities in neighbouring countries after attacks on two Iranian universities over the weekend. Since the start of the war, at least 21 Iranian universities have reportedly been damaged. Why has education become a target of the US-Israeli war on Iran?
In this episode:
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- Setareh Sadeqi (@leelako), assistant professor at University of Tehran
Episode credits:
This episode was produced by Chloe K Li, Sonia Bhagat and Sari el-Khalili with Spencer Cline, Catherine Nouhan, Tuleen Barakat, and our host, Malika Bilal. It was edited by Tamara Khandaker.
Our sound designer is Alex Roldan. Our video editors are Hisham Abu Salah and Mohannad al-Melhemm. Alexandra Locke is The Take’s executive producer.
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