Strike on Fardis Oil Depot

On March 7, 2026, the Fardis Oil Depot near Karaj, Alborz Province, was targeted in an Israeli airstrike. The attack caused extensive damage and a major fire at the facility. Human Rights Watch independently confirmed the attack through satellite imagery and verified videos. Satellite imagery from March 11 showed destroyed fuel-storage tanks at the depot, as well as damage to adjacent buildings.

According to the Deputy Governor of Alborz Province, six people were killed and 21 others injured in the attack. He stated that some of those killed and injured were ordinary civilians and residents living near the depot. He also said that the province's fuel-distribution network remained operational despite the damage and casualties.

The attack caused substantial damage beyond the oil-storage facility itself. According to the Governor of Alborz, a dialysis service center, two schools, and approximately 100 residential units and commercial premises sustained either partial or extensive damage.

Human Rights Watch's satellite analysis provides further detail on the damage to nearby civilian facilities. High-resolution imagery from March 18 showed apparent damage to a medical facility and a primary school near a destroyed oil tank at the Fardis depot.

New Lines Magazine's analysis of satellite imagery found that at least 13 oil-storage tanks at Fardis were damaged in the March 7 attacks.

The fires at the oil facilities generated substantial smoke and airborne pollution. New Lines used satellite imagery, geolocated footage, eyewitness accounts, and atmospheric-dispersion modeling to reconstruct the movement of pollution from the four oil-storage sites. Its modeling showed that airborne particles from the fires could spread across densely populated areas of the Tehran region. The investigation also documented residents reporting breathing difficulties, burning eyes and throats, and black petroleum-related residue deposited on cars and buildings.

IHL / Legal Relevance

The Fardis attack is particularly significant from an international humanitarian law perspective because the damage was not confined to the oil-storage facility. The reported deaths and injuries among nearby civilians, together with damage to a medical facility, schools, homes, and businesses, are relevant to the assessment of the foreseeable civilian harm resulting from the attack. HRW's satellite analysis independently confirmed damage to a medical facility and a primary school adjacent to a destroyed oil tank.

Human Rights Watch assessed the March 7 attacks on four oil depots around Tehran, including Fardis, as likely amounting to war crimes where foreseeable civilian and environmental harm was caused by attacks on primarily civilian infrastructure. HRW confirmed that the depots were used for civilian purposes but could not independently establish whether they were also being used to support military operations. Israeli authorities told HRW that the depots had been designated to supply fuel directly to Iranian armed forces and military infrastructure.

Under the applicable laws of armed conflict, oil depots and other energy infrastructure are presumptively civilian objects but may become military objectives if they are being used to support military operations. Even then, an attack would be unlawful if the expected civilian and civilian-object damage was excessive in relation to the anticipated military advantage. HRW also emphasized that proportionality assessments should account for reasonably foreseeable indirect and reverberating environmental effects, including consequences for civilian health, water, food systems, and the environment.

The Fardis case is therefore especially important because the available evidence documents not only direct damage to the depot, but also six civilian deaths, 21 injuries, destruction of a dialysis facility and schools, and damage to a large number of homes and businesses in the surrounding area. These consequences are directly relevant to any assessment of distinction, proportionality, and precautions in attack.