Investigation into School Attack in Iran Points to United States
A US Tomahawk cruise missile struck a military base adjacent to an elementary school in southern Iran. The Iranian government reported 168 deaths, including approximately 110 children. Video analysis by experts has corroborated these findings.
Footage released yesterday by the semi-official news agency Mehr and verified by BBC Verify shows the moment a missile struck an Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) base adjacent to Shajareh Tayebeh Elementary School in the city of Minab.
BBC Verify previously confirmed through satellite imagery, verified video, and expert analysis that the area surrounding the school was subjected to a series of strikes.
Experts who examined the latest footage identified the presence of Tomahawk missiles and evidence of multiple strikes, indicating the operation was conducted by the United States. Neither Israel nor Iran is known to possess Tomahawks.
One expert added that it was highly unlikely that an Iranian missile would coincidentally strike the same location and cause such a high death toll.
On Saturday (7 March), US President Donald Trump blamed Iran for the attack on the school.
“We believe it was done by Iran because they are very inaccurate, as you know, with their weapons. They have no accuracy whatsoever,” Trump told journalists aboard Air Force One.
As reported by CBS, the BBC’s news partner in the United States, the initial assessment by the US government stated that the deadly attack was “likely” carried out by the United States, but not with the intention of targeting the school, and may have hit the location due to error.
An Israeli government source told CBS News that Israel was not behind the attack and that its military was not operating near the school. Iran has blamed the US and Israel, but both nations have yet to openly accept or deny involvement.
The BBC has requested comment from the US government regarding the expert assessment of the latest footage.
BBC Verify’s analysis of the video showed a medical clinic belonging to the IRGC Navy within the base was likely struck by the Tomahawk missile visible in the footage. The clinic was approximately 200 metres from the school.
Verified video footage shows large plumes of smoke near the school before the Tomahawk missile is visible. This indicates the location had been struck multiple times before the missile in the recording detonated at the military base.
This finding aligns with BBC Verify’s previous analysis that the school was struck almost simultaneously with other buildings in the adjacent IRGC complex. Three experts identified the munition in the footage as a US-made Tomahawk missile.
A senior analyst at Mackenzie Intelligence Services stated that the munition in the video possessed “all the hallmarks of a US Tomahawk missile in its final phase.”
The Tomahawk is a long-range cruise missile that can be launched from submarines, warships, or aircraft, and has been part of the US arsenal for several decades.
Wes Bryant, a national security analyst and former US Air Force personnel, confirmed that the munition in the footage was a Tomahawk missile.
Bryant added that evidence of repeated strikes across the entire IRGC complex “demonstrates a deliberate and precision US operation.”
N R Jenzen Jones, director of Armament Research Services, previously told BBC Verify that it was highly unlikely that an Iranian missile caused the large explosive damage at the school, as Iranian missiles typically carry warheads with relatively small explosive yields.
Meanwhile, the highest-ranking US military official, General Dan Caine, stated on 2 March that Tomahawk was the first missile fired by the US Navy at Iran as part of “strikes along the southern flank.”
In a press conference on 4 March, the US Department of Defence displayed an illustrative map showing strikes during the first 100 hours of the conflict. The Minab area was included as one of the targets.
An ongoing internet blackout in Iran has made independent verification of incident details difficult.
Restrictions on freedom of coverage by international journalists in Iran have also made it extremely difficult to determine what happened in Minab on 28 February.
US forces are likely responsible for the attack on a girls’ school in Minab, Iran, on Saturday (28 February), according to two US officials who spoke to Reuters.
However, the findings have not reached a final conclusion and are awaiting the completion of the investigation, they added.
Video footage released by Mehr News and geographically detailed by Bellingcat also shows smoke billowing above the girls’ school.
Iranian officials stated that most of the 168 people killed were children. It is unclear whether any IRGC members were killed or who may have been operating there.
The elementary girls’ school in Minab had 264 pupils, according to Iran’s Ministry of Education.
The officials, who declined to be named as they were discussing sensitive military matters, did not rule out the possibility of new evidence emerging that would exonerate the United States.
The officials stated that the investigation’s conclusions could potentially point to another party responsible for the incident.