The Attack on the School - and the Silence Before It

On February 28 a missile struck an elementary school in the Iranian city of Minab. At least 175 people were killed according to Iranian authorities, most of them children. For weeks it remained unclear who was responsible for the attack. President Donald Trump publicly declared that Iran itself could be behind the attack. He did not present evidence for this. Now Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has ordered a comprehensive investigation of the incident. At a press conference at the Pentagon he said the truth must come to light. He did not assign direct responsibility to the United States. Yet the decision alone to initiate such an investigation suggests that Washington is now seriously examining whether American armed forces were behind the attack. See also our article: Minab, 175 Dead and a Tomahawk - One Video and 116 Meters

Several indications now point in this direction. Video recordings of the impact show, according to the assessment of weapons experts, a cruise missile explosion consistent with a Tomahawk missile. This weapon is used by the American Navy and launched from warships. Only a few states possess this system. Iran is not among them. Israel, which is also carrying out attacks against Iranian targets, does not use these missiles either.

The school that was hit is called Shajarah Tayyebeh. It is located in Minab in southern Iran. The building previously stood on land belonging to the Iranian Navy but was separated from the military area in 2015 and surrounded by a wall. Satellite images have shown a schoolyard with a playground there for years. Nevertheless the site apparently appeared on an American target list. Military facilities of the Revolutionary Guards are located nearby, which may have led to a misjudgment. Information is also increasingly accumulating that the United States worked with outdated intelligence information.

The investigation is being led by a general who does not belong to the U.S. Central Command. This command is responsible for the Middle East and also directs operations against Iran. The decision to appoint an officer from outside is intended to prevent possible responsible parties from influencing the investigation. The announcement of the investigation also reveals an unusual difference within the American leadership. While Donald Trump continues to claim that Iran could be responsible for the attack, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth avoids this portrayal. Instead he emphasizes that the United States would never intentionally attack civilian targets.

On the documented debris several components can be identified that are typical of the navigation and control section of a cruise missile. On a damaged circuit board the manufacturer Raytheon can clearly be read, marked with the assembly designation “ASSY 726460-801” and military serial codes. Such markings appear on avionics and control boards that process flight attitude, navigation and target guidance. Raytheon develops and produces among other systems the Tomahawk cruise missile, which is launched from warships or submarines. Next to it lies an antenna module labeled Ball Aerospace with the designation “SDL Antenna.” These components belong to antenna systems that receive satellite signals during flight and transmit positional data to the onboard electronics. In the immediate vicinity small precision motors from Globe Motors can also be seen, as they are used in guided weapons to perform the mechanical movement of control surfaces.

These parts are complemented by cylindrical metal components with American serial markings and a production date from the year 2016. Decisive is the combination of these elements: avionics board, antenna module, control actuators and U.S. military assembly markings belong to that electronic section of a cruise missile where navigation, flight control and course correction converge. This combination explains why weapons experts associate the fragments with the technology of a Tomahawk missile. A final attribution can only be achieved through a forensic analysis of serial numbers and the recovery site, but the visible manufacturer markings and component types already clearly show from which military technology system these components originate.

Important note: Even though the presented components from Minab correspond to parts that can occur in a Tomahawk, photographs could be taken, these parts alone do not prove that they really originate from exactly this missile. Further clarification is required for that. Decisive are serial numbers, manufacturer markings, the recovery site and forensic analysis.

The history of American military interventions shows, however, that mistakes occur again and again. In 2015 American aircraft bombed a hospital in Kunduz in Afghanistan for almost an hour. About thirty patients and doctors were killed. An investigation later determined that the soldiers involved did not know they were attacking a hospital. In 2021 an American drone strike in Kabul hit an aid organization employee who had just returned home. Nine other people, including children, died. The U.S. government admitted the error only after journalists reconstructed the background of the attack. In 2023 a similar incident occurred in Syria. A senior member of Al Qaeda was supposed to be targeted there. Instead a shepherd was killed. Only after an investigation was the mistake confirmed.

The attack on the school in Minab could now join this series. If it is confirmed that an American missile struck the school, it would represent one of the most serious civilian catastrophes of the current war. The investigation is now intended to clarify why the building was selected as a target and which information was available during the decision. For the families of the killed children this explanation will no longer change anything. But for the political responsibility in Washington it could become decisive.