Video released by Iranian media shows what appears to be a Tomahawk cruise missile attack near an Iranian school, reportedly killing up to 175 people, most of them school-age girls.
As more information about the attack emerged, Iranian officials blamed the United States and Israel. U.S. defense officials said they were investigating the incident. Israel said it was not aware of any attacks in the area and was also investigating what happened. According to the New York Times, the United States is the only power involved in a conflict that uses this type of missile.
Reports from the New York Times, CBS, and the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation suggest that the attack on the school may have been the result of outdated intelligence. Citing anonymous sources familiar with the ongoing U.S. military investigation, the newspaper reported that preliminary findings indicate the U.S. was involved in the attack on the school and relied on outdated targeting information.
Photos of missile debris with traces of an American cruise missile and described as “remnants of an American missile that hit children at Minab School” were posted by Iranian media on Telegram.
I’ve annotated the video below and slowed it down to make it easier to see the obvious missiles and landmarks.
This is what a Tomahawk missile looks like.
Below, we’ll take a closer look at the reference points shown in the video and compare them to satellite images of the area.
This is the original video, played at normal speed with sound.
The girls’ school strike became one of the central issues of the war. Human rights groups say the bombing should be investigated as a war crime.
Farzin Nadimi, a Washington, D.C.-based analyst at the Washington Institute who specializes in security and defense issues in Iran and the Persian Gulf region, said the facility adjacent to the school appears to have been associated at some point with an Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps naval base.
Video from the scene of the incident at the school shows smoke billowing from the school and nearby Revolutionary Guards compound. Satellite imagery from Planet Labs PBC confirms structural damage.
President Trump condemned the attack on Iran, saying the country has and uses Tomahawk missiles. According to reports from the Associated Press, the New York Times, the BBC and others, neither Iran nor Israel possesses this weapon.
Reuters and the Wall Street Journal reported, citing unnamed US sources, that US military investigators believe it is “likely” that US forces attacked the girls’ school.
Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Dan Kaine suggested in a press conference on March 4 that the United States carried out attacks in the neighborhood. Satellite imagery from Planet Labs PBC confirms damage to other Iranian naval bases.
A Feb. 28 social media post from U.S. Central Command shows Tomahawk missiles being fired from a Navy ship.
Contributors: Kim Hjelmgaard, Josh Meyer, Michael Loria, Shawn J. Sullivan.
This is a developing story and may be updated.
