US Military Linked to Deadly Iran School Strike, New Evidence Suggests

US Military Implicated in Deadly Iran School Attack

A recent investigation into a devastating strike on an elementary school in Minab, Iran, which killed scores of children, is increasingly pointing towards responsibility by the United States military. While the Trump administration has publicly denied targeting civilians and suggested Iran was responsible, ongoing probes by news organizations and human rights groups are uncovering evidence that suggests a U.S. strike may have inadvertently hit the school.

Investigative Efforts Uncover Mounting Evidence

Following the February 28th attack, which occurred at the outset of the conflict, multiple media organizations, including The New York Times, CNN, and the BBC, alongside Human Rights Watch, have been meticulously examining available material. Their investigations have focused on satellite imagery, social media posts, and videos to piece together the events of that day.

A key piece of evidence highlighted by The New York Times is a video that appears to show a U.S. Tomahawk missile striking a naval base belonging to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. As the camera pans, a nearby school is visible, believed to have been damaged by another missile during the same attack.

The Role of Outdated Intelligence

Maliki Brown of The New York Times’ visual investigations team explained the challenges and methodologies used in their probe. “We don’t have access um to Iran um or even the south of the country Manab,” Brown stated, referring to the difficulty of independent verification on the ground. Instead, investigators relied on material shared online by witnesses.

Brown elaborated on the process of authentication and verification, “The challenge for us as reporters is to authenticate, verify that material and then piece it together to try to answer you know what happened, how could it have happened.” Using satellite imagery, they were able to compare witness footage with high-resolution images, confirming the location and timing of the strike.

Crucially, the investigation revealed that the school’s current location was once part of the targeted Iranian military facility. “The compound is a sort of a rectangular um compound and uh on the northern corner of that uh is the school building currently. Go back to 2013. It was contained within the naval base,” Brown explained. Between 2013 and 2016, the area was apparently repurposed for civilian use, with the establishment of a school, including cleared grounds and playing areas.

This detail suggests a potential cause for the tragic incident: the use of outdated intelligence by the U.S. military. “So the intelligence used to target the base was old intelligence and that the school therefore may have been identified as a military uh objective,” Brown noted.

Precision Strikes and Military Capabilities

The nature of the strike also supports the theory of U.S. responsibility. “These precision strikes are um are carried out by guided missiles like the Tomahawk and only the US in this war has access to Tomahawks,” stated Brown. These missiles are programmed with specific target coordinates.

The damage observed at the school was not consistent with secondary effects from an explosion at the naval base. “The damage is not consistent with secondary damage. The nearest building is 80 m away,” Brown clarified, emphasizing the direct impact on the school building itself.

Furthermore, satellite imagery confirmed that buildings within the naval base were hit with precision air strikes, a capability attributed to the U.S. and Israel. “Iran doesn’t have that capability, just the US and Israel does,” Brown asserted. After obtaining comments from Israeli officials who stated they were not operating in the area at the time, and referencing a U.S. military map indicating U.S. operations in the south where Minab is located, the evidence began to coalesce around U.S. responsibility.

Official Denials and Shifting Narratives

Despite the mounting evidence, the Trump administration has maintained its stance. In a press conference, a U.S. official stated, “Uh, not that we know of, Sean. And the Department of War is investigating this matter. And I would just tell you very strongly, the United States of America does not target civilians, unlike the rogue Iranian regime that targets civilians, that kills children…” The official further suggested that Iran was using propaganda and pointed the finger at the Iranian regime for targeting civilians.

However, the investigative findings present a starkly different picture, suggesting that while the school may not have been an intended target, the building it occupied was programmed as a military objective due to outdated intelligence. The U.S. military’s use of highly accurate guided missiles, such as the Tomahawk, programmed with specific coordinates, means that even if the intelligence was old, the strike itself was precise, leading to the devastating outcome for the civilian school.

Looking Ahead

As investigations continue, the focus will be on whether the U.S. military will acknowledge its potential role in the strike and how this evidence might influence international discourse and accountability. The findings underscore the critical importance of accurate and up-to-date intelligence in modern warfare and the devastating consequences when such information proves flawed.

Source: Evidence mounts that US military is responsible for deadly strike on Iran school | DW News (YouTube)