U.S. military investigators believe American forces were responsible for an airstrike on an Iranian girls’ elementary school that killed more than 160 people – mostly children – on Feb. 28, according to two U.S. officials who spoke with Reuters.
The officials also confirmed that the probe is still ongoing and has not reached a conclusion.
Shajarah Tayyebeh Girls’ School, near the Strait of Hormuz, was struck on Saturday during the joint kinetic military airstrikes by the U.S. and Israel, as part of the U.S.’s “Operation Epic Fury.”
According to an analysis of images by The Wall Street Journal (WSJ), the school is located near a compound connected to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC). The Corps is “an elite branch of Iran’s armed forces,” WSJ reported.
According to a U.S. official who also spoke with WSJ, the school appears to have been previously used as an IRGC headquarters.
Officials assured Reuters that new evidence can be uncovered as the investigation continues, vindicating the U.S. and instead revealing another party’s involvement in the incident.
Gen. Dan Caine, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, confirmed on Wednesday that the U.S. conducted airstrikes along the southern coast of Iran. Gen. Caine stated that the attacks were done to neutralize the Islamic Republic’s naval and missile capabilities.
U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth acknowledged the U.S. military’s investigation of the incident.
Despite a suspected correlation, the U.S. has not publicly confirmed any responsibility for the attack.
Iran has blamed both the U.S. and Israel, but according to an Israeli military official, they have not been aware of an Israeli strike in the region.
A senior Israeli official with direct knowledge of the joint operations confirmed that Israel has been targeting missile launch sites in western Iran, and the U.S. has maintained its focus on the southern region.
Investigators will most likely be looking for intelligence failure, munition failure, or human error as one of the mistakes that led to the incident, former U.S. and Israeli military officials told WSJ.
