Error led to American missile attack on Iranian educational institution – Investigation reveals

A US military investigation has reportedly concluded that a Tomahawk missile mistakenly struck an Iranian elementary school due to a targeting error, according to The New York Times, which published the findings on Wednesday.

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The newspaper cited US officials in stating that the investigation into the February 28 attack is ongoing, but preliminary findings indicate that the United States was indeed responsible for the incident.

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CNN also reported that the US military had accidentally struck the school, located in the southern city of Minab, citing unidentified sources briefed on the probe.

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The US military had been targeting an adjacent Iranian base, of which the school building was formerly a part, but used outdated data to set the target coordinates, resulting in the strike on the school, The Times reported.

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President Donald Trump initially suggested that Iran itself may have been responsible for the attack, despite the fact that Iran does not possess Tomahawk missiles.

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Trump later stated that he could "live with" whatever the investigation reveals, but when asked about The New York Times report on Wednesday, he told reporters, "I don't know about it."

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Iranian media reported that funerals were held for at least 165 people, including children, who were killed in the attack on the school, although this toll has not been independently verified.

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According to The Times, US Central Command officers used outdated data provided by the Defense Intelligence Agency to create the target coordinates for the strike, and investigators are still looking into why this outdated information was used and who failed to verify the data.

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The school is situated on the same block as buildings used by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard's navy, and the site of the school was originally part of the base, The Times reported.

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The building housing the school had been fenced off from the base between 2013 and 2016, The Times said.

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AFF has been unable to access the location of the strike to independently verify the details reported by Iranian media.

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Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian has blamed the United States and Israel for the attack, while Israel has consistently denied any involvement in or knowledge of the strike.

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US Secretary of State Marco Rubio stated last week that the United States would not intentionally target a school.