Airstrike on Azadi 12,000-Capacity Indoor Sports Hall, Tehran

On the morning of 5 March 2026, the sixth day of the US–Israeli military campaign against Iran, the 12,000-capacity indoor hall of the Azadi Sports Complex in Tehran was struck and fully destroyed. Iranian state media outlets, including Tasnim News Agency and ISNA, published images and footage documenting extensive fire damage and structural collapse throughout the facility. The hall had for decades hosted major domestic and international sporting events, including football, futsal, volleyball, taekwondo, and skating competitions. Iran's Minister of Sport and Youth, Ahmad Donyamali, visited the site after the attack and stated that the destruction of sports venues constitutes a war crime under the Olympic Charter and international humanitarian law. He confirmed the hall was empty of civilians at the time of the strike. The Islamic Republic filed a formal protest letter to the United Nations Security Council regarding attacks on civilian infrastructure. The Tehran Football Federation issued a statement condemning the attack alongside the simultaneous strike on Besat Stadium in southeast Tehran. Multiple Iranian sports federations, including tennis, kabaddi, and volleyball, issued condemnatory statements. The Iranian Ministry of Sport subsequently documented damage to 203 sports sites across 17 provinces as a result of the broader military campaign. Reconstruction of the Azadi hall was ordered by the minister. The UN Secretary-General's spokesperson, Stéphane Dujarric, called for accountability regarding civilian casualties and attacked civilian infrastructure, stating that parties to the conflict are obligated to respect international humanitarian law, including refraining from targeting sports venues and civilian infrastructure.