Incident Code
Incident Code
Incident Date
Location
Geolocation
Geolocation
Airwars Assessment
Two civilians, reportedly a nuclear scientist and his wife, were killed and their daughter was injured in their home on the second floor of a building on the corner of 26th and Gisha Street in Tehran, Iran by an alleged Israel drone strike early in the morning on June 20, 2025. Basij members and plainclothes officers who were protecting the nuclear scientist may have also been injured.
A source informed BBC News that “this house was used as a safe house and at the time of the attack, several Basij and plainclothes officers were in the house with the scientist, who were taken to the hospital. The scientist who was being protected in the house had not been in Tehran for several days and had returned to this house an hour and a half before the attack.”
Tasnim News Agency reported that nuclear scientist Asghar Hashemi Tabar and his wife Tahereh Taheri were killed in the attack. According to Asghar’s son-in-law, he was born on September 1, 1974 in the village of Kohneh and completed his PhD in Strategic Defense Sciences from the National Defense University, while his wife Tahereh was born on September 10, 1978 in Sabzevar. Along with 13 other people, Asghar was put on the U.S. sanctions list by the Treasury Department in 2019 because of “activities related to nuclear and missile research and development.” Asgha’s son-in-law described him as someone who “cared more about science than work and always told me to continue my education alongside my work” and described the husband and wife as “extremely patient and kind….They participated in all cultural ceremonies and were always the initiators of good deeds.” In describing the couple’s connection with each other, their son-in-law lamented “How lovingly these two dear ones lived together and spent all their moments together.”
Under International Humanitarian Law, civilians are protected against attack “unless and for such time as” they take direct participation in hostilities. As such, Airwars has classified individuals working as nuclear scientists as civilians, unless local sources reported that the individual was directly participating in hostilities, in which case Airwars has classified them as a militant. As there is no mention among local sources that Dr. Tabar participated directly in hostilities, he has been classified as a civilian.
The BBC reported that “several” plainclothes officers were injured in the attack. In line with Airwars’ methodology, “several” has been quantified as two, and the total number of civilian injuries recorded in this incident is three, accounting for the Ashar and Tahereh’s injured daughter, Fahimeh.
The BBC also reported that “several” Basij members were injured. Under the Geneva Conventions, Article 43 of Additional Protocol I, armed forces of a state include all organised armed forces, groups, or units. As the IRGC is a state armed force, and the Basij is a constituent branch, individuals cited as being members of the Basij have been recorded as militants, unless sources reported a formal end to their affiliation. As such, they have been classified as militants, with “several” being quantified as two, in line with Airwars’ methodology. This will be updated should additional information become available.
According to Mehr News Agency, Asghar and his wife Tahereh’s only child is a young woman named Fahimeh Hashemi Tabar, who was severely injured in the attack. 23-year-old Fahimeh, a master’s degree student at Sharif University, was in a coma and only learned of her parents’ deaths after 112 days.
Where sources identified a belligerent, all sources attributed the strikes to the Israeli military.
Victims
Family members (3)
Geolocation Notes
Reports of the incident mention Gisha Street (منطقه گیشا) in Tehran (تهران). This incident was independently geolocated by Twitter/X user Pixel (@ayatsubzero). Satellite imagery shows the strike location at the following exact coordinates: 35.736213, 51.377055.

Imagery: ayatsubzero