ISTANBUL – The United States is investigating an airstrike on a girls’ school in southern Iran that Iranian authorities say killed 168 students, while Israel has denied carrying out the attack.
US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth told reporters that the US is looking into the incident. “All I can say is we’re investigating that,” he said about the bombing of Shajareh Tayyebeh Girls’ School in Minab. He stressed that US forces “never target civilian sites.”
Israel’s military echoed its denial. Spokesperson Nadav Shoshani told NPR that there were no known Israeli military operations in the area. “We are not aware of any IDF action there,” he said, adding, “I don’t know who carried out the bombing.”
Iranian authorities reported that the strike occurred Saturday, during the first wave of US-Israeli attacks on Iran. Minab Governor Mohammad Radmehr said the strike struck the school while classes were in session, killing young girls between 7 and 12 years old. The building suffered extensive damage, including collapsed concrete roofs crushing classrooms.
Tehran says 168 people were killed and at least 95 injured. While the US and Israel deny responsibility, Iran has accused both countries of the attack. Historically, Israel has sometimes revised initial denials of civilian-targeted strikes after new evidence emerged.
Sourced online/elami
