US CENTCOM Denies Launching Attack on Sports Hall and School in Iran's Lamerd

JAKARTA - The United States Central Command (US CENTCOM) denied reports that US forces attacked civilian facilities in the southern Iranian city of Lamerd and called it a "false" allegation.

"US forces did not launch any attacks on Lamerd City or anywhere else within a 30-mile (48 kilometers) radius during the first day of Operation Epic Fury," spokesman Captain Tim Hawkins said in a statement, Anadolu (1/4) reported.

Furthermore, Captain Hawkins also rejected the claim of using the Precision Strike Missile (PrSM), saying that the footage circulating in the media did not match the specifications of the system.

"PrSM is 13 feet long. The ammunition depicted in the video appears to be twice as long, consistent with the dimensions and silhouette of Iran's Hoveyzeh cruise missile," Captain Hawkins said.

The US CENTCOM's rebuttal came following a report from The New York Times citing visual evidence and weapons experts who said the PrSM hit a sports hall and a nearby school on February 28, killing at least 21 people.

Analysis of video and photos from the scene showed that the weapon used was a PrSM, a short-range ballistic missile developed by the US Army.

The newspaper said a US official confirmed the use of PrSM, while analysts pointed to a fragmentation pattern consistent with the system.