Iran issues March 30 deadline to US, threatens strikes on American universities in Middle East

In a sharp escalation amid the ongoing 2026 Iran conflict, Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) has issued a direct warning to the United States. The IRGC demands an official US condemnation of recent strikes on Iranian universities by 12:00 p.m. Tehran time on Monday, March 30, 2026. Failure to comply, the statement warns, will trigger retaliatory attacks on US-affiliated and Israeli universities across the Middle East (also referred to as West Asia).

Background: Strikes on Iranian Academic Institutions

The threat follows reports of US-Israeli airstrikes that damaged or destroyed Iranian universities, including:

• Iran University of Science and Technology in Tehran
• Isfahan University of Technology

Iranian officials describe these as deliberate attacks on civilian educational and research infrastructure during the broader regional conflict that began earlier in 2026. The IRGC accuses “American-Zionist aggressor forces” of targeting Iran’s scientific and cultural foundations under pretexts related to nuclear concerns.

Iran’s Foreign Ministry has previously condemned the strikes, calling them part of a pattern aimed at crippling the country’s higher education and research capabilities.

Potential Targets: US University Campuses in the Gulf

Several prominent American institutions maintain branch campuses in the Gulf region, including:

• Texas A&M University in Qatar
• New York University (NYU) in Abu Dhabi, UAE
• Other educational partnerships in the United Arab Emirates, Qatar, and beyond

These campuses host thousands of students, faculty, and staff. The IRGC’s warning has raised immediate security concerns for expatriate communities and host nations in the Gulf.