When missiles tore through Shajareh Tayyebeh Elementary School in the southern Iranian city of Minab on February 28, 2026, the educators inside were faced with a terrifying, split-second choice. They could have fled to save themselves. Instead, they made a different choice: they stayed.
In the face of a brutal US-Israeli terrorist attack, the female teachers of Shajareh Tayyebeh became human shields for the children placed in their care. Their final moments were not defined by panic, but by profound courage, maternal instinct, and an unbreakable sense of duty. For these women, teaching was never merely a profession; it was a divine trust. When the school came under fire, they transformed from educators into guardians of the highest order, leaving behind powerful legacies of selflessness and faith.
“Other People’s Children Are In My Care”
Among the most heartbreaking testimonies of that tragic day is that of Mahdieh Rasouli, the school’s deputy principal. As the sound of the first explosions echoed through the halls, Rasouli could have evacuated. Instead, she remained, hugging terrified students to calm them. Her final words, a desperate and beautiful prayer, have since echoed across the nation: “God, help me; other people’s children are in my care.” She did not abandon her post until the very end.
Found in Eternal Embrace
For some teachers, their martyrdom was captured in a physical embrace. Narges Zakari, a fourth-grade teacher and mother of two, stayed behind to comfort her students and contact their families. When rescue teams recovered her body from the rubble, she was found tightly holding a child in her arms. Similarly, the school’s energetic physical education teacher, Fatemeh Shahdadi, ran back into the burning building to evacuate children. She was crushed by the collapsing roof while shielding a student with her own body. The child in her arms survived—a living testament to Shahdadi’s ultimate sacrifice.
Mothers, Sisters, and Martyrs
The tragedy of Shajareh Tayyebeh was compounded by the profound personal losses suffered by the teachers. Neda Solhi-Zadeh, a loving mother and creative soul, lost her life alongside her 11-year-old son, Hami, while trying to calm her students. Her daughter, Nila, was left to carry the memory of a mother who saw her students as an extension of her own family.
Khadijeh Kamali, a devoted Quran teacher, was martyred alongside her niece, Zahra, who was a student at the school. Fatemeh Askari, another beloved Quran memoriser and teacher, had spoken to her mother just minutes before the strike, excitedly discussing an upcoming pilgrimage to Mashhad. Fate, however, had a different journey planned for her—one of eternal ascension.
A Leader to the End
Fatemeh Taheri-Fard, the school’s principal, exemplified leadership in its purest form. Realising that female students were trapped on the upper floors as the attack intensified, she ran toward the danger rather than away from it. She ascended the stairs to stand with the girls, ensuring they were not alone in their final, terrifying moments.
The Unwritten Legacy
From Nasim Neyestani, an accounting graduate who found her true calling in education, to Mahsa Ranjbari, a 28-year-old counsellor who dreamed of opening a workshop to employ women in need, these women were vibrant, ambitious, and deeply loved. Mahsa’s remains were recovered on what should have been her fourth wedding anniversary. Fareshteh Sangarzadeh, a devoted daughter and teacher, was laid to rest surrounded by the tears of the community she served.
The classrooms of Shajareh Tayyebeh School may now stand silent, but the lessons taught by these martyred women will resonate for generations. They did not teach from a blackboard on their final day. Instead, they taught the ultimate curriculum of faith, love, and sacrifice, proving that a teacher’s devotion to her students transcends even the boundary of life and death.
May Allah (SWT) grant these noble shahidas the highest ranks of Paradise and grant patience to their grieving families.
Reference: PressTv