CAIRO, March 29. /TASS/. The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), the elite branch of Iran’s Armed Forces, has issued a stark warning to the United States over recent strikes on Iranian universities, demanding that Washington formally condemn the attacks by noon on March 30, Tehran time (8:30 a.m. GMT), to prevent further escalation.

"The invading American-Zionist forces, by bombing Tehran University of Science and Technology, have once again targeted Iranian universities in their bombings. <…> If the US administration wants its universities in the region not be among the two targeted for retaliation in this stage, must by 12 noon on Monday, March 30, Tehran time, issue an official statement condemning the bombing of universities," the statement, distributed by the Tasnim news agency, said.

The IRGC stressed that two universities in the Middle East would be destroyed regardless of Washington’s response in retaliation for the attacks on Iranian educational institutions. The statement did not specify which universities would be targeted.

On February 28, the United States and Israel launched a military operation against Iran, hitting major cities, including Tehran. The White House justified the attack with missile and nuclear threats allegedly coming from Tehran. The Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps retaliated with sweeping attacks on Israel. US military installations in Bahrain, Jordan, Iraq, Qatar, Kuwait, the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia were also targeted.