Ahmed Kamel – Egypt Daily News
U.S. military investigators believe it is likely that American forces were responsible for a strike on a girls’ school in southern Iran that reportedly killed 168 Iranian elementary school girls (ages 7 to 12), according to two U.S. officials familiar with the inquiry, though the investigation has not yet reached a final conclusion.
The strike occurred on Saturday in the city of Minab during the opening phase of the joint U.S.–Israeli military campaign against Iran. The incident has drawn international attention and renewed scrutiny over civilian casualties as the conflict continues to escalate across the region.
The officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity due to the sensitivity of the matter, said preliminary findings from the investigation suggest that U.S. forces may have been responsible for the strike. However, they cautioned that the inquiry remains ongoing and that new evidence could still emerge that might absolve the United States and point to another party.
Details surrounding the strike remain unclear. Investigators have not publicly disclosed what type of munition may have been used, what intelligence led to the strike, or whether the location may have been mistakenly identified as a military target.
The U.S. Department of Defense has confirmed that it is examining the incident. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth acknowledged the investigation during a press briefing.
“We’re investigating that,” Hegseth said. “We, of course, never target civilian targets. But we’re taking a look and investigating that.”
The Pentagon declined to provide further details, referring questions to the U.S. military’s regional command. A spokesperson for United States Central Command, Captain Timothy Hawkins, said it would be inappropriate to comment while the inquiry remains underway.
The White House also refrained from directly addressing the preliminary findings. Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said in a statement that the U.S. government was reviewing the incident while emphasizing that American forces do not deliberately target civilians.
Meanwhile, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said earlier in the week that the United States would not intentionally strike a school and confirmed that any such allegation would be subject to a formal investigation.
Iranian officials say the attack killed 150 students, though independent verification of the death toll has not been possible. Iran’s ambassador to the United Nations in Geneva, Ali Bahreini, accused the United States of responsibility and called for international accountability.
Images broadcast on Iranian state television showed funeral processions for the victims, with small coffins draped in Iranian flags carried through crowds of mourners before burial.
According to officials familiar with the military campaign, U.S. and Israeli forces have divided operational responsibilities inside Iran. Israel has primarily targeted missile launch sites in western Iran, while U.S. forces have focused on military infrastructure and naval facilities in southern parts of the country.
The incident has also drawn attention from international organizations. The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights called for a thorough and transparent investigation. Spokesperson Ravina Shamdasani said the responsibility to investigate lies with the forces believed to have carried out the attack.
Under international humanitarian law, deliberately targeting civilian infrastructure such as schools or hospitals could constitute a war crime.
If the investigation ultimately confirms U.S. responsibility, analysts say the strike could become one of the deadliest incidents involving civilian casualties in decades of U.S. military operations in the Middle East.
The inquiry remains ongoing, and officials have not indicated how long it may take before a final determination is made.
