While much of the Western media is busy handwringing over whether President Donald J. Trump’s strikes on Iranian infrastructure could constitute a war crime, there is a deafening silence on what clearly is one: a regime deliberately placing women and children in harm’s way as human shields.
Now that President Trump has just negotiated a two-week ceasefire with Iran in return for opening the Strait of Hormuz, the media are whining about that, too.
The misplaced criticism, and the hypocrisy, are not just glaring: They are morally indefensible.
Iranians react after a ceasefire announcement at the Enqelab square, in Tehran, on April 8 2026. AFP via Getty Images The deal came just hours after the theocratic regime used women and children as human shields in front of bridges around the country in fear of Trump following through with his threat to attack.
In recent days, the regime has called on civilians, including young people, to form human chains around critical infrastructure like bridges and power plants as a deterrent against US attacks.
What the world is watching is not patriotism. It is a regime putting women and children in danger.
At the same time, credible reports confirm that Iran is recruiting children as young as 12 to support military operations, man checkpoints, and participate in defense efforts.
This is not a government protecting its people. It is a regime hiding behind them.
Smoke rises following strikes on Tehran on April 7, 2026. AFP via Getty Images I was 1 year old when my family fled Iran. I do not remember the moment, but I live with its meaning.
Because if I were there today, if my four daughters or I stepped outside and a strand of our hair showed, we could be arrested, beaten, or sentenced to death. That is the reality for millions of women living under this regime.
And still, the world hesitates rather than rallying behind President Trump, in his courageous mission to free the world of its greatest state sponsor of terrorism.
Iran is one of the world’s leading executioners. Hundreds are put to death every year, often after sham trials with no due process. Protesters, dissidents, and young people are among them. During the recent crackdown, children were killed in the streets, some shot, others beaten and raped and many simply erased. At least 118 children have already been identified among those killed in the latest wave of protests alone.
Where are UNICEF, Amnesty International, the United Nations, and the International Committee of the Red Cross when children are being armed, used, and killed?
Where are the Western media so aggrieved that Trump’s strikes against Iran’s infrastructure are supposed “war crimes”?
Where are the emergency condemnations when a regime openly mobilizes civilians as human shields?
For years, the Iranian regime has invested heavily in shaping global perception. It has pushed narratives that blur the line between victim and aggressor, between resistance and repression. It has embedded influence in Western institutions and discourse. And it is working. The proof is in the hesitation to call this what it is.
I think about who I would be if my family had not left.
Would I be forced into silence, afraid to speak? Would I be punished for how I dress? Would I be one of the names we never hear about, executed without a headline?
That’s exactly why the daughters of this murderous regime have found a asylum here in America, where women have equality and freedom to dress, say and do as they want
It is important to understand that the Iranian people are not the regime. They are its victims. They are applauding the United States and Israel’s mission to free them in the world of this death cult.
And right now, they are being used as shields in a war they did not choose.
For decades, this regime has exported terror beyond its borders while crushing freedom within them. It has funded proxy violence, destabilized entire regions, and pursued power at the expense of its own citizens.
Now, as pressure mounts and the possibility of decisive action looms, the regime is showing its true face once again. Not strength. Not strategy. Desperation.
A government that hides behind children is not a government that deserves legitimacy.
Because every second the world stays silent, the regime grows bolder. Every excuse gives it cover. Every hesitation costs innocent lives.
And today, they are being placed on the front lines as child soldiers and as shields.
Shirin Yadegar is the CEO and and creator of www.lamommagazine.com.
