The U.S. Strike Iranian Girls School tragedy is under investigation after reports say a U.S. Tomahawk missile mistakenly struck a school in Minab, Iran, killing more than 100 girls.
The Trump administration is under intense scrutiny after a preliminary investigation reportedly concluded that a U.S. missile strike killed more than 100 schoolgirls at a girls’ school in Iran, raising serious questions about how the attack was authorized.
According to reporting citing officials familiar with the investigation, the strike happened February 28, 2026, during the opening phase of the ongoing Iran war.
A Tomahawk cruise missile struck the Shajareh Tayyebeh girls’ school in Minab, killing a large number of children who were inside the building at the time.
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. pic.twitter.com/AVqiuolgWm
— Seyed Abbas Araghchi (@araghchi) February 28, 2026
Investigators now believe the United States intended to target a nearby Iranian military installation, but the missile instead hit the school after military planners relied on outdated intelligence data when selecting the coordinates.
Most of the victims were young students attending the school.
Outdated Intelligence Reportedly Used For Targeting
According to details from the preliminary report, officers with U.S. Central Command created targeting coordinates using information from the Defense Intelligence Agency that had not been properly updated.
The building that was struck had previously been associated with a military installation, but it had long since been converted into a school for girls.
Because the data had not been revised, the building was still listed in military systems as part of the base.
The missile strike destroyed the building.
Emergency crews responding to the scene later discovered remnants of a Tomahawk missile, a weapon used by the U.S. military for long-range precision strikes.
Photos of the damaged missile components later circulated online through Iranian media channels.
Fragments of the American cruise missile “Tomahawk” were discovered at the site of the attack on a girls’ school in Minab. pic.twitter.com/iueEPrdWNi
— Zmei (@zmei_kt) March 10, 2026
Investigators are now trying to determine why the targeting information was never re-verified before the strike was launched, especially given the presence of civilian structures nearby.
Trump Says He Was Unaware Of The Report
When asked about the findings during an interview with CNN, President Donald Trump said he had not seen the report detailing the investigation.
Earlier statements from administration officials had suggested Iran might have been responsible for the explosion, but analysts later determined the damage pattern matched a Tomahawk missile strike.
The United States is the only military involved in the conflict that is known to be using that specific weapon in the current war.
Despite that, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt pushed back on media coverage, claiming news outlets were repeating Iranian propaganda.
Lawmakers React To The Deadly Strike
The incident has sparked criticism from many lawmakers, including some members of the president’s own party.
Democrats have condemned the attack as a devastating failure that resulted in the deaths of children.
But even some Republicans have acknowledged the possibility that the strike was a major error.
During a CNN interview, Sen. John Kennedy of Louisiana described the incident as a “terrible mistake.”
Kennedy later said he believed the United States was likely responsible, even as the investigation continues.
The controversy surrounding the strike has also drawn attention to recent changes inside the Department of Defense.
According to investigative reporting from ProPublica, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth dismantled parts of a civilian protection initiative created during the previous administration.
That program — known as the Civilian Harm Mitigation and Response Plan — was designed to reduce the risk of civilian casualties during U.S. military operations.
Much of the initiative was rolled back as part of a broader Pentagon focus on increasing battlefield “lethality,” according to the report.
Critics now argue that weakening those safeguards could make incidents like the Minab strike more likely to happen.
Officials stress that the report linking the United States to the Minab school strike is only preliminary, and investigators are continuing to examine what led to the deadly targeting error.
