Many American universities operate campuses across the Gulf region, including Texas A&M University in Qatar and New York University in the United Arab Emirates.
Iran’s Revolutionary Guard on Sunday threatened to target U.S. universities in the Middle East, stating that two Iranian universities had been destroyed in U.S.-Israeli attacks.
A statement published in Iranian media read: “If the U.S. government wishes for its universities in this region to remain safe from retaliatory action… it must issue an official statement condemning the bombing of the universities by 12:00 PM (Tehran time) on Monday, March 30.”
The statement further added: “We advise all staff, professors, and students of U.S. universities located in this region—as well as residents living in their immediate vicinity—to stay at least one kilometer away from the campuses.”
Campuses of several U.S. universities are scattered across the Gulf region, such as Texas A&M University in Qatar and New York University in the United Arab Emirates.
According to media reports, attacks took place in Tehran between Friday night and Saturday morning, including one targeting the University of Science and Technology in the northeastern part of the capital. These attacks caused damage to buildings but resulted in no casualties.