TEHRAN, Iran — A century-old pillar of global health research, the Pasteur Institute of Iran, has been severely damaged following a wave of US-Israeli airstrikes on the Iranian capital. The strike on the historic medical facility has sparked international concern and a sharp condemnation from Tehran, which has characterized the incident as a "direct assault on global health security."
The strike occurred in the early hours of Thursday, April 2, 2026, as part of a broader aerial campaign targeting infrastructure across Tehran, with witnesses reporting multiple explosions near the institute’s central campus and its high-security laboratories.
The resulting blast wave and shrapnel caused extensive destruction across approximately 23,000 square meters of the facility, reducing several historic buildings—including a national heritage landmark donated in 1924—to rubble. This loss of research infrastructure is significant, as the institute confirmed that 13 national reference laboratories critical for monitoring infectious diseases like rabies, COVID-19, and viral hemorrhagic fevers were affected.
Despite the massive scale of the damage, institute officials confirmed that all 110 faculty members and over 400 researchers remained unharmed due to the timely implementation of contingency measures and evacuations prior to the strike.
The strike on the Pasteur Institute coincides with a significant escalation in the ongoing conflict. Israeli military officials stated that the latest waves of attacks targeted "military infrastructure" and sites linked to advanced weapons research. However, Iranian Health Ministry spokesman Hossein Kermanpour condemned the targeting of a medical research center.
"The aggression against the Pasteur Institute of Iran—a century-old pillar of global health and a member of the International Pasteur Network—is a crime against humanity that threatens international health security," Kermanpour stated in a post on X.
Founded in 1921, the Pasteur Institute of Iran is the oldest public health center in the country and a vital node in the global Pasteur Network, which comprises 33 institutions worldwide. It has been instrumental in controlling regional outbreaks of cholera, plague, and tuberculosis.
While the institute has announced that core diagnostic operations will continue at other branches, the loss of specialized equipment and biobanks in Tehran is expected to hamper regional disease surveillance for years. As the US and Israel continue their "Operation True Promise" campaign and Iran vows "crushing" retaliation, the destruction of this scientific landmark serves as a stark reminder of the mounting humanitarian and cultural toll of the war.