Preliminary Investigation Says U.S. Responsible for School Attack in Iran

Shajareh Tayyebeh School in Iran after being hit by an attack on Saturday. (Twitter/@araghchi)

JAKARTA - The United States military's preliminary investigation says Washington is responsible for the Tomahawk missile attack on an elementary school in Iran that killed at least 175 people, mostly children. According to a report by The Guardian quoting The New York Times, which was quoted on Thursday, March 12, the attack on February 28 was allegedly due to a mistake in target designation by the US military.

The Shajarah Tayyebeh Elementary School in Minab, Iran, as written by The Guardian, was the site hit. Initial findings said officers at the US Central Command plotted the coordinates of the attack using outdated data from the Defense Intelligence Agency. This finding reinforces Tehran's claim that the school building was hit by a US missile, not an Iranian attack as Donald Trump had implied.

Trump previously accused Iran of being behind the bombing. However, he did not provide any evidence. On the other hand, the Pentagon and US Central Command only stated that the incident was still under investigation. This attitude shows Washington's efforts to withhold an open admission to one of the deadliest attacks on civilians in the latest war in Iran.

Visual data actually points strongly to US responsibility. Historical satellite imagery shows that the school building was indeed located within the IRGC compound, but had been separated from the barracks by a wall for at least nine years. The building also has clear markings as an educational facility, such as colorful murals and a small sports field.

Videos verified by The Guardian show the school's debris and thick smoke from the direction of the IRGC compound next to it. Other footage released by Mehr News Agency was later analyzed by Bellingcat. The results of geolocation show that the missile hit the IRGC compound adjacent to the school.

According to The Guardian, weapons expert NR Jenzen-Jones identified the missile in the video as a Tomahawk. That's important. Because, in this war, only the US is known to have this type of missile. He also confirmed that the missile was not Iran's Soumar.