2026 Minab school airstrike
Part of the 2026 Iran war
Rescue workers and bystanders at the school after the attack
Map
Location of the school within the Hormozgan province
Location 27°6′35.4″N 57°5′05.1″E / 27.109833°N 57.084750°E / 27.109833; 57.084750
Shajareh Tayyebeh school
Minab, Hormozgan province, Iran
Date 28 February 2026 (2026-02-28)
10:45 a.m. IRST (UTC+03:30)
Attack type
Airstrike
Deaths 168–180 (according to Iran)
Injured 95 (according to Iran)
Victims Primarily female schoolchildren
Accused  United States Armed Forces[1][2][3]

On 28 February 2026, the Shajareh Tayyebeh[a] girls' elementary school in Minab, Hormozgan province in southern Iran, was destroyed during the school day, reportedly being triple tapped by three missiles,[5] amid the initial US-Israeli attacks against Iran in the 2026 Iran war. According to Iranian state media, 168–180 people were killed, the majority of whom were schoolchildren.[6][7][8][9] The attack was the single most deadly airstrike in the ongoing bombing campaign.[10][11][1]

Subsequent investigations by The New York Times, CBC and NPR among others concluded that the United States was likely responsible for the strike. The attack was condemned by the Iranian government, UNESCO,[12][13] and other international human rights organizations and activists.

Background

Further information: 2026 Iran war

In early 2026, amidst negotiations between Iran and the US mediated by Oman, the United States began a military buildup near Iran. On 28 February 2026, the US and Israel launched attacks against Iran.[14]

According to locals, the Shajareh Tayyebeh school in Minab was a former military facility converted into an all-girls elementary school.[15] At the time of the airstrikes, the school was located approximately 600 metres (660 yd) away from the Sayyid al-Shuhada military complex which includes the headquarters of the Asif Brigade of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) Navy.[10][16][17][18] According to satellite imagery, the building in which the school was housed was initially walled within the IRGC compound in 2013 but was then walled off by September 2016.[10] Al Jazeera stated that the school that "had been separated from the military complex and had become a clearly defined civilian institution for more than 10 years".[18]

The Guardian determined there was no indication it served a military purpose and found that the compound buildings adjacent to the school were a medical clinic and a pharmacy,[11] the former of which was walled off from the compound between 2022 and 2023.[3] An investigation by the CBC found the school was struck as part of "a precision airstrike on a military complex immediately adjacent to the building." The CBC report stated that the school building "was once part of" the IRGC base that was supposedly being targeted.[2] NBC News said that according to Minab's mayor and a mother of one the school's students, the school facility was built on an IRGC base which had been closed around 15 years ago with all military personnel moved at the time and the school being the only operational facility at the former base.[5]

Events

According to Iranian state media, amid the 28 February airstrikes across Iran, the Shajareh Tayyebeh school was struck by a missile.[19] The airstrikes, which began at around 10:00 a.m. local time, coincided with the time at which Iranians usually send their children to school, as Saturday is a working day in Iran.[20][11] The impact instantaneously killed dozens inside.[11] Human rights organization Hengaw stated that around 170 students were present in the school at the time while the Iranian Ministry of Education said that 264 students were present,[20][5] among them mostly girls between seven and 12 years old.[21] Coordinating Council of Iranian Teachers' Trade Associations representative, Shiva Amelirad, said the school had decided to close soon after the airstrikes began, however parents were not able to reach the school before the airstrike landed on the compound.[15]

The school was struck at some time between 10:00 and 10:45 a.m.[11][22] as classes were changing periods in the school. The impact affected over half of the structure, destroying the walls of the building and causing its roof to collapse, burying people underneath;[20][21] graphic footage shows some bodies partly trapped.[11] The explosion destroyed at least half of the two-story school building.[10]

According to testimony given to the Middle East Eye by two Red Crescent medics and a victim's parent, the initial strike to the school was followed by a second, "double tap" strike.[23] One of the medics recounted that, following the first strike, the school's principal moved a group of students to a prayer room and called parents, asking them to come pick up their children; that area was then hit by a second strike, killing most that had taken shelter.[23] The parent corroborates this story, relating he received a call from the school informing him of the first strike, which his daughter had survived; but before he could arrive, the school was hit again, and she was killed.[23] According to Minab's mayor and the Iranian Ministry of Education, the school was triple-tapped, being struck three times in total.[5]

On 1 March, BBC Persian and Kashmir Observer published accounts of a clinic struck in the same location, which the former characterized as "what appeared to be a second attack on the same location" and the latter as a "follow-up attack", with the latter citing local officials.[24][25] The New York Times corroborated that smoke was billowing from two buildings;[10] footage shows smoke coming out of the school's windows, whose muraled walls were adorned with paintings of crayons, children, and an apple.[26] Experts confirmed that there were other nearby strike points as well.[3]

Scene at the school after the attack

Confirmation and death toll

The body of a girl trapped under the rubble of the school

While the Iranian government said the missile was a US-Israeli airstrike, Vice Governor of Hormozgan Ahmad Nafisi said the school was struck amidst US-Israeli air raids on Minab.[27] The school was reportedly located near an IRGC base which had been the target of another US-Israeli airstrike the same day.[18][16][19][20] Videos taken of the destroyed school immediately following the attack were verified by The New York Times,[20] The Washington Post,[28] Reuters, and Iranian fact-checking organization Factnameh, as authentic; these videos were compared against existing imagery of the school.[19] Drop Site News published accounts of the incident from several parents whose children were among those killed.[17]

The death toll, reported as 168–180 by Iranian state media, and 95 injured, has not been independently confirmed.[6][7][8][5] A majority of those reportedly killed were schoolchildren,[7][8][9] but included teachers.[15] The state-run ISNA news agency reported that the school principal was killed in the strike.[11] Many of the victims were schoolgirls between the ages of 7 and 12, some of whom were trapped under the rubble. According to a local official, among the dead, in addition to the children, were the students' parents and school staff.[17][21][11]

On 1 March, the day the search for survivors stopped, Shiva Amelirad, representing the Coordinating Council of Iranian Teachers’ Trade Associations, told TIME magazine that 108 or more children had been killed in the attack, according to sources within Minab she was in contact with. Minab's public prosecutor office reported later that day, through the state-run Islamic Republic News Agency (IRNA), that 150 "innocent school girls" were killed, with some still trapped under the rubble.[15]

The judicial head of Hormozgan stated that 140 of the deceased had been identified up to that point, while efforts continued to identify another 25 people, and that the remains of the bombs used in the attack had been located, seized, and transferred for analysis in preparation for an investigation.[29]

Misinformation

Following the attack, Israeli and Iranian pro-Monarchist opposition pages began disseminating information that the airstrike was a failed IRGC interception. These claims originated from associated Telegram channels and were debunked.[30][18] The New York Times noted that "a single errant missile wouldn't have caused such precise and targeted damage to several buildings across the naval base."[1] It was also falsely claimed on the social media website X that the IRGC had admitted to mistakenly destroying the school in a missile airstrike, despite the fact that no such statement admitting responsibility had been made by the Iranian state.[31] Other social media accounts claimed the footage was supposedly old footage shot in Pakistan, which has been debunked.[11]

Aftermath and response

People search through rubble after the school airstrike (Mehr News)

As reports emerged that the school had been hit, many panicked locals, including family members of victims, rushed to the scene while security forces attempted to push families back, fearing the area would be targeted again, and sealed off the building.[17] Soon after, recovery efforts began—some informal—as civilians and Iranian Red Crescent Society emergency workers searched through the debris.[10] Although initially using just their hands,[17] rescue services used construction cranes and shovels to save people trapped by rubble,[20] while black smoke scorching the remaining walls continued to pour from the building's windows.[15][32] Footage reveals items including severed arms,[10] bodies, and school bags being recovered.[32][33] One video shows a man, previously digging through the rubble, waving dust-covered textbooks and worksheets; in a quote translated by The Guardian, he yelled:[11]

"These are the schoolbooks of the children who are under these ruins, under this rubble here," he shouts. "You can see the blood of these children on these books. These are civilians, who are not in the military. This was a school and they came to study."[11]

Corpses were collected in body bags and injured victims taken away in ambulances.[10] Later in the day of the airstrike, bodies of the victims were transferred to their relatives gathering at a nearby designated collection area.[17] The attack flooded Minab's morgues, however, forcing some of the bodies of victims to be held in refrigerated trucks.[15] The search for victims ended on 1 March.[10]

Mass funeral

Mourners are gathered, some praying, in Minab's central square surrounding some of the caskets of the victims of the attack; a billboard of Ali Khamenei can be seen in the background.
Mourners are gathered around rows of graves, amounting to a hundred or more pits, waiting to be filled with the caskets of victims of the attack
Scenes at the funeral and mass burial of victims of the attack, both attended by thousands of mourners

On 3 March, Iran held a mass funeral for the children killed in the airstrike in a public square in Minab, attended by thousands of mourners. Those in attendance held imagery of the attack and phrases condemning what one victim's mother called "a document of American crimes."[34][35] Images show excavators preparing a hundred or more graves at a mass burial site, which was subsequently filled with the mourners which held a procession bringing the caskets of victims to the site.[26][5]

Reactions

Domestic

President Masoud Pezeshkian said that "the American and Zionist aggression against Minab Elementary School will never be erased from the historical memory of our nation."[12] The spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Iran called the airstrike a "blatant crime," adding that "the world must stand up to this great injustice," including "the UN Security Council [which] must act now in line with its primary responsibility under the Charter."[37] Foreign minister Abbas Araghchi said the "crimes against the Iranian people will not go unanswered."[17] The spokesperson for Iran's Health Ministry, Hossein Kermanpour, called the report of the attack "the most bitter news" so far, adding that there may be even more bodies under the rubble.[19]

On 1 March, Iran's ambassador to the United Nations raised the "unjustifiable" and "criminal" issue with UN human rights chief, Volker Türk,[35][38] which Türk heeded.[26]

The head of Iran's Red Crescent, Pirhossein Kolivand, said the "unique and bitter incident" had "no comparison with any other incident" even outside of Iran, as he said no singular attack killed so many students simultaneously, "even in Gaza."[10]

International

United States

Captain Tim Hawkins, a spokesperson for the United States Central Command (CENTCOM) said on 1 March that "we are aware of reports concerning civilian harm resulting from ongoing military operations. We take these reports seriously and are looking into them. The protection of civilians is of utmost importance, and we will continue to take all precautions available to minimize the risk of unintended harm."[10][20] On 4 March, US Secretary of State, Marco Rubio, said the US Department of Defense and The Pentagon were investigating whether the airstrike was fired by the US and added that the US "would not deliberately target a school."[34][35][26] The same day, US Secretary of Defense, Pete Hegseth, evaded questions on the matter and provided few details other than to echo Rubio in saying that the US was "investigating" the incident and would "never target civilian targets."[35]

Israel

Israel said it was investigating the incident.[38] Israel Defense Forces (IDF) spokesperson, Lieutenant colonel Nadav Shoshani, said Israel did not know who was responsible for the airstrike and said the IDF was not aware of any IDF operation within the region.[39]

Israeli opposition leader Yair Lapid, in an interview with the Russian TV Rain channel, said that "This is a war and in war there are always victims among the population. Obviously it is terrible when children suffer, children should not die when adults fight. The difference between the Iranian regime and the US and Israel is that we did it by mistake, and they do it on purpose as was the case in Beit Shemesh. Nobody has killed more Iranians than the Iranian regime, and now they are complaining that an attack, by mistake, killed these poor people. We are all so sorry that these young women and children were killed. It is terrible, it should not have happened. These are the tragic and terrible mistakes that sometimes happen in war. We wish it had not happened, but this is the reality."[40]

When questioned whether he was implying that the US military or the IDF attacked the school, he replied "Let it be clear and sharp, I have never taken responsibility on behalf of Israel for the attack on the girls' school in Iran. On the contrary, I have sharply attacked in the international media the hypocrisy of those who remained silent when the Iranian regime killed 30,000 of its people and suddenly have something to say about every tragic mistake that could happen in the war. I suggest everyone follow the international propaganda operation that we opened and fight for Israel all over the world."[40]

Intergovernmental organizations

In a statement, UNESCO condemned the airstrike, calling it "a grave violation of humanitarian law". United Nations Secretary-General António Guterres also condemned the airstrike.[13] A panel of 18 independent experts on the UN Committee on ‌the ⁠Rights of the Child said it was "alarmed" by news of the strike and said children must be protected from war. The UN human rights office, omitting its belief of the party responsible, said "the forces behind a deadly attack on a girls' ​school in Iran" to investigate the airstrike and report its findings.[38] Its high commissioner, Türk, called for a prompt, impartial and thorough investigation.[26]

Human rights activists and organizations

The Euro-Mediterranean Human Rights Monitor described the attack as a "horrific crime and a consolidation of the collapse of civilian protection", and said that any attack on "protected persons" such as children and teaching staff constitutes a serious violation of international humanitarian law.[18] The Norway-based human rights group, Hengaw, said it was seeking the names of victims of the attack, adding that "the establishment and expansion of military facilities in close proximity to schools and public spaces place civilians at heightened risk."[26]

Pakistani female and human rights activist Malala Yousafzai, who is a United Nations Messenger of Peace and Nobel Peace laurate, said news of the airstrike left her "heartbroken and appalled." Yousafzai condemned the killings of civilians, particularly those of children.[10][13]

Analysis

Airstrike targeting and precision

An Al Jazeera investigation into the airstrike concluded thus:[18]

The attackers’ ability to spare newly established adjacent facilities (such as the Martyr Absalan clinic) and their glaring failure to avoid an elementary school operating at full capacity and packed with 170 girls leaves us with two scenarios, both unequivocally condemnatory: Either US and Israeli forces relied, in striking the vicinity of the Asif Brigade, on a very old, outdated intelligence target bank (dating to before 2013), which would constitute grave negligence and reckless disregard for civilian lives; or the strike was carried out deliberately and with prior knowledge to inflict maximum societal shock and undermine popular support for Iran’s military establishment.

According to investigations by the CBC and NPR, the area where the school is located was the target of multiple precision strikes, with multiple craters and plumes of smoke present, while the school, as well as the surrounding complex, fall under the area of operations of the US military, with verified US airstrikes having taken place nearby. Both investigations suggested that the strike was likely the result of a failure in intelligence gathering.[2][3] An investigation by The New York Times also concluded that the school was likely hit by a US precision strike.[1]

Experts speaking to NPR corroborated the airstrike's precision. Researchers at Oregon State University's Conflict Ecology Laboratory, Corey Scher and Jamon Van Den Hoek, noted that the detonation centroids were "pretty clean." Satellite imagery specialist Jeffrey Lewis agreed that the airstrikes were precision airstrikes but added that the strike being an error was more likely. According to Lewis, the US was more likely than Israel to be responsible for the strike based on Minab's location.[3]

A CBC investigation concluded that the school was bombed as part of a precision airstrike against the military complex adjacent to the targeted building and that it was not a mistake. It said that the impact on the school demonstrates that it was either a weapons system failure or a serious CENTCOM intelligence gathering error and added that the US primarily targeted military bases and missile launchers in southern and central Iran, while Israel has focused its operations in the north saying that "Minab's location in the south, near the Strait of Hormuz, places it within the US military's primary area of operations and lines up with other US strikes on the Bandar Abbas Naval Base, about 80 kilometres west of Minab, and facilities in Konarak, which is 400 kilometres to the southeast."[2]

The Al Jazeera investigation also linked the attack and subsequent misinformation to similar attacks targeting civilian facilities by the US and Israel, such as the Bahr El-Baqar primary school bombing (1970), Amiriyah shelter bombing (1991), Qana massacre (1996) and Kunduz hospital airstrike (2015) and Israeli attacks on schools during the Gaza war (since 2023).[18]

United States military investigation

On 5 March, Reuters reported that two American military personnel involved in an internal investigation believed the attack was likely perpetrated by the United States, although a conclusion had not yet been reached. The US and Israel had divided their strikes geographically, with the US responsible for striking targets in southern Iran where the school was located. Independent analysis of satellite imagery suggested that the school and the Sayyid al-Shuhada military complex had been struck near-simultaneously by air-delivered munitions.[41]

Legality

Shannon Bosch, an associate professor of law at Edith Cowan University, analyzed the strike from the perspective of international humanitarian law (IHL). Without drawing firm conclusions, Bosch noted that schools and children under 18 are especially protected under IHL, concluding that "the legality of that strike turns on whether the expected harm to children and the school was excessive compared to the military advantage gained by striking the target."[32]

Regarding the attack, international humanitarian law expert Janina Dill said that attackers are required to "verify the status" of targets to avoid harming civilians. Beth Van Schaack said the US "should have known that a school was in the vicinity".[1]

Media coverage

The French daily Libération noted that much of the international press was reluctant to assign blame to Israel or the US in their coverage of the incident.[42] Similarly, a, Polish journalist for Gazeta Wyborcza, Mariusz Zawadzki [pl], opined that the event is being mostly ignored by Western media.[43]

See also

  • List of massacres in Iran
    • 2026 Iran massacres
  • List of school-related attacks
  • List of school massacres by death toll
  • List of attacks related to primary schools
  • United States war crimes
  • Iran Air Flight 655, civilian passenger airliner shot down in 1988 by the United States Navy

Notes

  1. ^ Persian: شجرهٔ طیبه, lit. 'Sacred Tree'.[4]

References

  1. ^ a b c d e Browne, Malachy; Boxerman, Aaron (5 March 2026). "Analysis Suggests School Was Hit Amid U.S. Strikes on Iranian Naval Base". The New York Times. Retrieved 5 March 2026.
  2. ^ a b c d Angelovski, Ivan; Szeto, Eric; Bilhete, Britnei (4 March 2026). "Who bombed a girls' school in Iran? A visual investigation". CBC News. Retrieved 5 March 2026.
  3. ^ a b c d e Brumfiel, Geoff; Hurt, Alyson (4 March 2026). "Satellite images show Iran school strike hit more buildings than earlier reported". NPR. Retrieved 4 March 2026.
  4. ^ Rome, Feliz Solomon in Jerusalem, Lara Seligman in Washington, and Henna Moussavi in (6 March 2026). "U.S. Likely Hit Girls' School Attached to Iranian Military Compound". The Wall Street Journal.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  5. ^ a b c d e f Da Silva, Chantal; Hunter, Molly; Gao, Larissa; Khodadadi, Amin; Pinson, Shira; Mulligan, Matthew; Tarrant, Tavleen (4 March 2026). "What we know about the strike on a school in Iran as the death toll rises". NBC News. Retrieved 5 March 2026.
  6. ^ a b Kekatos, Mary (5 March 2026). "At least 186 students, teachers allegedly killed in Iran as organizations call for investigation". ABC News. A total of 186 students and teachers have been killed in Iran and 114 have been injured since U.S.-Israeli attacks began over the weekend, the Iranian education ministry said in a statement. About 20 education centers have been either damaged or fully destroyed, according to the ministry. Of those killed, 168 were from the Shajare Tayyiba Elementary School, an all-girls elementary school in Minab -- located in southern Iran -- which was hit by airstrikes, according to Iranian officials.
  7. ^ a b c "Death toll from Israeli strike on Iran girls school rises to 180". Middle East Eye. Archived from the original on 2 March 2026. Retrieved 2 March 2026.
  8. ^ a b c McClure, Tess (1 March 2026). "Death toll from school bombing in southern Iran reportedly rises to 165". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 1 March 2026.
  9. ^ a b "Israel strikes two schools in Iran, killing more than 80 people". Al Jazeera. 28 February 2026. Archived from the original on 28 February 2026. Retrieved 28 February 2026.
  10. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l Browne, Malachy; Livni, Ephrat; Mahoozi, Sanam (1 March 2026). "Strike on Girls' School Kills at Least 175, Iranian State Media Says". The New York Times. Retrieved 3 March 2026.
  11. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k McClure, Tess; Parent, Deepa (3 March 2026). "Minab school bombing: how the worst mass casualty event of the Iran war unfolded – a visual guide". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 3 March 2026.
  12. ^ a b "پزشکیان: تجاوز آمریکایی و صهیونیستی به دبستان میناب هرگز از حافظه تاریخی ملت ما زدوده نخواهد شد" [Pezizkian: The American and Zionist aggression against Minab Elementary School will never be erased from the historical memory of our nation]. SNN (in Persian). 28 February 2026. Retrieved 28 February 2026.
  13. ^ a b c "Deadly bombing of Iran primary school 'a grave violation of humanitarian law': UNESCO". United Nations. 1 March 2026. Archived from the original on 3 March 2026. Retrieved 3 March 2026.
  14. ^ Edwards, Christian; Karina, Tsui; McCluskey, Mitchell (28 February 2026). "What we know about the US-Israeli attack on Iran and Tehran's retaliation". CNN. Archived from the original on 28 February 2026. Retrieved 28 February 2026.
  15. ^ a b c d e f Schneid, Rebecca; Saberi, Roxana (1 March 2026). "More Than 100 Reported Killed in Strike on Girls' School in Iran". Time. Retrieved 2 March 2026.
  16. ^ a b Habibiazad, Ghoncheh; Greenall, Robert (1 March 2026). "At least 153 dead after reported strike on school, Iran says". BBC News. Archived from the original on 1 March 2026. Retrieved 1 March 2026.
  17. ^ a b c d e f g Aslan, Mahmoud (28 February 2026). ""Small Children Who Knew Nothing of Politics or Wars"". Drop Site News. Archived from the original on 28 February 2026. Retrieved 28 February 2026.
  18. ^ a b c d e f g "Al Jazeera investigation: Iran girls' school targeting likely 'deliberate'". Al Jazeera. 3 March 2026. Retrieved 3 March 2026.
  19. ^ a b c d Parent, Deepa; McClure, Tess (28 February 2026). "At least 80 children dead as missile reportedly hits school in southern Iran". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 28 February 2026.
  20. ^ a b c d e f g Solomon, Erika; Browne, Malachy; Willis, Haley (28 February 2026). "Iran Says Dozens Killed in Strike on School". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Archived from the original on 28 February 2026. Retrieved 28 February 2026.
  21. ^ a b c "US and Israeli attack on Iran: At least 153 girls killed in strike on school". Middle East Eye. 28 February 2026. Archived from the original on 28 February 2026. Retrieved 28 February 2026.
  22. ^ Bozorgmehr, Najmeh (28 February 2026). "Strike on Iranian primary school kills 108, authorities say". Financial Times. Archived from the original on 28 February 2026. Retrieved 28 February 2026.
  23. ^ a b c "Exclusive: Iranian girls killed by 'double-tap' strikes on Minab school". Middle East Eye. 4 March 2026. Retrieved 5 March 2026.
  24. ^ Makoii, Akhtar (1 March 2026). "Strike on Iranian girls' school kills 165 people". The Telegraph. Retrieved 2 March 2026.
  25. ^ "Minab Girls School Attack Death Toll Mounts to 148". Kashmir Observer. 1 March 2026. Archived from the original on 1 March 2026. Retrieved 2 March 2026.
  26. ^ a b c d e f "Iran says a girls' school was hit by a deadly air strike. Here's what we know". CBS News. 4 March 2026. Retrieved 4 March 2026.
  27. ^ "More than 50 girls killed in Israeli strike on Iranian school". EFE. 28 February 2026. Archived from the original on 28 February 2026. Retrieved 28 February 2026.
  28. ^ El Chamaa, Mohamad (1 March 2026). "Reported airstrike hits Iranian girls' school". Washington Post. Archived from the original on 1 March 2026. Retrieved 1 March 2026.
  29. ^ "Arranca el funeral de los más de 160 muertos en un bombardeo a una escuela en Irán en plena ofensiva de EEUU e Israel" [Funeral begins for the more than 160 people killed in a bombing of a school in Iran amid the US-Israeli offensive]. Europa Press. 3 March 2026. Retrieved 5 March 2026.
  30. ^ "The Bombing of an Iranian School". New Lines Magazine. Retrieved 2 March 2026.
  31. ^ Uribe, Maria Ramirez (2 March 2026). "No, Iran didn't take responsibility for girls' school strike". PolitiFact. Archived from the original on 2 March 2026. Retrieved 3 March 2026.
  32. ^ a b c Bosch, Shannon (1 March 2026). "Does international law still matter? The strike on the girls' school in Iran shows why we need it". The Conversation. Archived from the original on 2 March 2026. Retrieved 3 March 2026.
  33. ^ Ho, Cason (28 February 2026). "'More than 100 children' dead in US and Israel strike on Iranian school, Iran says". Australian Broadcasting Corporation. Retrieved 3 March 2026.
  34. ^ a b "Iran holds mass funeral for girls, staff killed in US-Israel school attack". Al Jazeera, Associated Press, Reuters. 3 March 2026. Retrieved 3 March 2026 – via Al Jazeera.
  35. ^ a b c d Dunbar, Maria (4 March 2026). "Pete Hegseth says US is 'investigating' deadly strike on girls' school in Iran". The Guardian. Retrieved 4 March 2026.
  36. ^ Seyed Abbas Araghchi [@araghchi] (28 February 2026). "The destroyed building is a primary school for girls in the south of Iran. It was bombed in broad daylight, when packed with young pupils. Dozens of innocent children have been murdered at this site alone. These crimes against the Iranian People will not go unanswered" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  37. ^ "بقائی: حمله به دانش‌آموزان مدرسه در میناب یک جنایت آشکار است" [Baqaei: Attack on school students in Minab is a blatant crime]. IRNA (in Persian). 28 February 2026. Retrieved 28 February 2026.}
  38. ^ a b c Le Poidevin, Olivia (4 March 2026). "UN 'deeply disturbed' by strike on Iran school that killed 160 children". Reuters. Retrieved 4 March 2026.
  39. ^ Shoshani, Nadav (2 March 2026). "IDF spokesperson gives an Israeli perspective on the campaign in Iran" (Interview). Interviewed by Ryan, Erika; Hardymon, Barrie; Summers, Juana. NPR's All Things Considered. Retrieved 4 March 2026.
  40. ^ a b Azoulay, Moran; Nirenburg, Alex (3 March 2026). "לפיד על הפגיעה בביה"ס לבנות באיראן: "טעות טרגית נוראית. ההבדל - הם הורגים בכוונה"" [Lapid on the attack on the girls' school in Iran: "A terrible tragic mistake. The difference - they kill on purpose"]. Yediot Ahronot (in Hebrew). Retrieved 5 March 2026.
  41. ^ Stewart, Phil; Ali, Idrees (5 March 2026). "US investigation points to likely US responsibility in Iran school strike, sources say". Reuters. Retrieved 6 March 2025.
  42. ^ "En Iran, Etats-Unis et Israël accusés d'avoir attaqué une école pour filles et fait des dizaines de morts" [In Iran, the United States and Israel are accused of attacking a girls' school and killing dozens]. Libération. 1 March 2026.
  43. ^ Zawadzki, Mariusz (5 March 2026). "Zawadzki: Tym razem Irańczycy mają dobry powód, by śpiewać "Śmierć Ameryce!" i "Śmierć Izraelowi"". Gazeta Wyborcza (in Polish). Retrieved 6 March 2026.