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Iran Minab School Strike 2026: US Tomahawk Kills 175 Girls Trump Points at Iran, Eight Experts Point at the Evidence

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The Iran Minab school strike 2026 is now the most forensically documented  and politically explosive  moment of the US-Iran war. A seven-second video, verified by eight independent munitions experts and geolocated by Bellingcat, shows what investigators say is an American Tomahawk missile striking a compound directly next to the school where 175 people were killed, mostly girls aged seven to twelve.

Key Facts — Shajareh Tayyebeh School, Minab
  • Date: February 28, 2026 the first day of US-Israeli strikes on Iran
  • Location: Shajareh Tayyebeh girls elementary school, Minab, Hormozgan Province
  • Deaths: 168 children (girls, ages 7–12) + 14 teachers total 175–180 killed
  • Strike pattern: School hit three times by three separate missiles seven buildings struck across the compound
  • Weapon identified: BGM/UGM-109 Tomahawk cruise missile operated exclusively by the US Navy in this conflict
  • Video status: 7 seconds verified by Bellingcat, CNN, NBC, NPR, Washington Post, CBC, BBC, New York Times
  • Trump's position:Blames Iran contradicted by every major investigation and two US military personnel
  • Pentagon: "We are investigating" Hegseth refuses to confirm or deny US responsibility
  • Joint Chiefs confirmation: "First shooters at sea were Tomahawks unleashed by the United States Navy"
  • Reuters (March 5, 2026): Two US military personnel internally believe the attack was likely a US strike

What Eight Experts Found in the Seven-Second Video

The footage was filmed from a nearby construction site. It shows a munition with a cruciform shape, centrally mounted wings, and a rear tailkit  the visual signature of an American BGM/UGM-109 Tomahawk Land Attack Missile. As the camera pans right, a vast column of smoke rises from the direction of Shajareh Tayyebeh school.

Trevor Ball, a munitions expert who first verified the footage for Bellingcat, identified it as a Tomahawk. Sam Lair of the James Martin Center for Nonproliferation Studies explained the methodology to CNN: the missile fits the visual profile of a TLAM, and because the footage was shot approximately 250 metres from the likely impact point, the munition must be large  ruling out other similar-looking weapons in the US arsenal.

“Given the belligerents, the use of this munition indicates it is a US strike, as Israel is not known to possess Tomahawk missiles. Neither Iran, Israel, nor the Gulf states have Tomahawks in their arsenals.”— Dr. N.R. Jenzen-Jones, Director, Armament Research Services · CBS News

The evidence chain closes when CENTCOM’s own record is considered. US Central Command released a photograph of the USS Spruance  part of the USS Abraham Lincoln carrier group, positioned within range of Minab  firing a Tomahawk missile on February 28, the same day as the school strike. General Dan Caine, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs, confirmed at a press conference: “The first shooters at sea were Tomahawks unleashed by the United States Navy.”

Forensic Identification

8 experts — Bellingcat, CBS, CNN, NYT, NPR, WaPo, NBC, BBC — all confirm a Tomahawk missile

Geolocation — Bellingcat

Strike confirmed at former IRGC base site — school the only active facility for 15+ years

Centcom's Own Photo

USS Spruance Tomahawk launch photo released by CENTCOM — dated February 28, within range of Minab

Internal US Assessment

Reuters, March 5: Two US military personnel in internal inquiry believe strike was likely by the United States

Trump Blames Iran What the Evidence Actually Shows

Speaking aboard Air Force One, President Trump said: “Based on what I’ve seen, I think it was done by Iran. Because they’re very inaccurate, you know, with their munitions. They have no accuracy whatsoever. It was done by Iran.”

Jeffrey Lewis, professor of global security at Middlebury College, directly contradicted this. The missile in the video, he stated, is not consistent with any known Iranian-made cruise missile design. Every major investigative outlet that examined the evidence  CNN, NPR, The Washington Post, NBC News, CBC, BBC, Bellingcat, and The New York Times — reached the same conclusion: the evidence points to the United States.

Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth has not echoed the president’s claim, stating on multiple occasions that the Pentagon is conducting its own investigation. As of March 10, 2026, no official US determination has been made public.

The Targeting Failure A School on a Fifteen-Year-Old Map

According to Minab’s mayor and a parent of one of the school’s students, the Shajareh Tayyebeh school sits on land that once housed an IRGC naval base  decommissioned approximately 15 years ago, with all military personnel relocated at that time. The school has been the only operational facility on the site ever since.

Historic satellite imagery showed no military activity at the site since a 2010 exercise  the last documented use by the IRGC. Jeffrey Lewis raised a devastating implication: the most powerful military in the world may have bombed a school full of girls using targeting intelligence that was fifteen years out of date.

“It is increasingly clear that the US military was responsible for the deadly attack  and it was hit by a precision weapon, not an errant attack.”— Kenneth Roth, Former Executive Director, Human Rights Watch

The New York Times further dismantled the accidental misfire theory, noting that a single errant missile would not explain the precise and targeted damage inflicted across seven buildings throughout the compound.

Senate Demands Investigation UN and Iran Respond

Six US senators  the senior Democrats on national security panels  issued a joint statement calling themselves “horrified” and declaring the killing of schoolchildren “appalling and unacceptable under any circumstance.” They demanded a full, independent, and transparent investigation.

UN experts described the strike as “a grave assault on children and on the future of an entire community.” Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said: “Attacks on schools target a nation’s future. Targeting patients and children blatantly violates humanitarian principles. The world must condemn it.”

Iranian officials reported that US and Israeli strikes have damaged schools, dozens of medical centres, residential buildings, a water desalination plant, and other civilian infrastructure across Iran since February 28  with the Iranian Red Crescent reporting over 10,000 civilian structures damaged in twelve days of conflict.

FAQ

Did the US bomb the school in Minab, Iran in 2026?

Eight independent munitions experts, Bellingcat geolocation, and reporting from CNN, NPR, Washington Post, BBC and the New York Times all conclude the strike was carried out with a US Tomahawk missile. Two US military personnel told Reuters they internally believe the strike was likely perpetrated by the United States. The White House has not acknowledged responsibility. President Trump has blamed Iran.

How many people were killed in the Minab school strike?

Iranian authorities reported 168 children and 14 teachers killed  approximately 175 to 180 dead in total. Victims were predominantly girls aged 7 to 12 attending Shajareh Tayyebeh elementary school in Minab, Hormozgan Province, on February 28, 2026  the first day of US-Israeli airstrikes on Iran.

Why was a school built on an Iranian military base?

The school was built on land that once housed an IRGC naval base, which was decommissioned approximately 15 years ago. The school has been the only active facility on the site since then. Investigators have raised the possibility that the strike used targeting intelligence that was 15 years out of date.

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