By David Meadows
Lanesboro, MN
U.S. forces carried out a precision missile strike on Saturday February 28, 2026, in Minab, Iran. The target of this strike was an Iran Revolutionary Guard Corp. (IRGC) naval base. Iranian state TV claims an all-girls school was struck in the attack, resulting in 165 young girls being killed. The first thing that needs to be said is that the death of 165 children is a horrific tragedy. The families of these children will be forever shattered. In that regard, it does not matter who is responsible or what the circumstances were, it was a horrific humanitarian crisis. This is where the issue gets complicated. Questions that arise concern the validity of Iran’s claim, what did happen, what were the circumstances, and who is to blame.
First let us address the location and use of the supposed school building. According to satellite images posted on March 04, 2026, yahoo!News article the school building is located next to the IRGC naval base. The article states “While the facility was functioning as a school, CBC News has confirmed a previous New York Times report stating the building was once part of an Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) base.”(1)
Next, we look at the validity of Iranian officials’ claims that 165 schoolgirls were killed in the strike. Several photos of the bombsite are posted in a March 1, 2026, Australian Broadcast Corporation (ABC) article.(2) None of these photos show signs of actual victims, no signs of blood, and no signs of a classroom environment. That alone is not enough to say this was not a school or that the children are not buried under the rubble. Israeli sources have said the photo circulated on Iranian State television are actually from the January 2026 protests. A February 12, 2026, article from Center for Human Rights in Iran reports that 200 schoolchildren were murdered by the regime in January protest crackdowns. “If the global community fails to respond decisively when more than 200 schoolchildren are gunned down and buried in secret, it enables the gravest of crimes to be committed with impunity,” said Bahar Ghandehari, director of advocacy at the Center for Human Rights in Iran (CHRI).”(3) In 2022 Amnesty International wrote “The Iranian authorities have routinely harassed and intimidated the families of child victims to coerce them into silence or to force them to accept narratives absolving authorities of responsibility for the deaths of their loved ones in written statements….”.(4) These articles alone do not refute the validity of the claims made by Iranian officials.
So, what is the truth and who is responsible? We may never know the answer to that question and have to live with the bitter taste that leaves in our mouths. Iran has a well-documented history of indiscriminate killings and human rights abuses against its own citizens. The regime also has a history of using doctored images and AI created media for propaganda use in the ongoing Israel-Hamas conflict. It is hard to believe that we would strike a school when using precision guided missiles. It has been documented that the “school” building is or had been part of the IRGC base. In war there are mistakes and there is collateral damage. Any collateral damage that results in the loss of life is horrible, especially when it involves children. At the end of the day, which is the only conclusion we can be certain of.
Sources cited:
(1) www.yahoo.com/news/articles/bombed-girls-school-iran-visual-014753114.html?fr=sycsrp_catchall
(2) www.abc.net.au/news/2026-03-02/iran-girls-school-strike-minab-explained/106404558
(3) iranhumanrights.org/2026/02/over-200-schoolchildren-killed-by-security-forces-in-iran-theyve-effectively-massacred-an-entire-school/
(4) www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2022/12/iran-authorities-covering-up-their-crimes-of-child-killings-by-coercing-families-into-silence/
Anonymous says
The New York Times recently published an important update regarding this matter, (which you can read if you can clear the paywall): https://www.nytimes.com/2026/03/11/us/politics/iran-school-missile-strike.html
Here’s an article published by The Independent that references the New York Times’ reporting: https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/us-politics/iran-us-missile-strike-school-investigation-b2936553.html
Here are two paragraphs excerpted from the aforementioned article published by The Independent…
“Citing U.S. officials familiar with the preliminary findings, the New York Times reported Wednesday that the February 28 hit on the Shajarah Tayyebeh elementary school stemmed from the use of old Defense Intelligence Agency data showing the school building to be part of an adjacent Iranian military base.
The Times said the inaccurate data was provided by the DIA to U.S. Central Command, which created a targeting package for the missile strike that included the school building.”
For the preceding to be untrue, the U. S. military investigation would likely have provided incorrect information to the New York Times OR the New York Times AND/OR The Independent ia lying.
If so, then why would the U. S. military lie about such an important matter?
I was always told as a young man by my elders is that if you’re going to shoot something, you need to be absolutely sure that you are aiming at your intended target.
The “Ready, Fire, Aim” strategy all too often leads to tragic outcomes.
Steve Ellis says
Who is responsible? Gee, I wonder if it’s the country that chose to fire the missile in the first place?
This makes me think of the abusive spouse who, after brutalising their partner, says “look what you made me do!”
“Collateral damage” must be one of the most obscene phrases in the English language – it’s “OOPS, sorry about that. Too bad about your children.”
The killing in Iran and Lebanon is all down to draft-dodger Donald Trump in the end – and the spineless Republicans in Congress who have abrogated their responsibilities.
David S Meadows says
It has since come out that it was our missile that hit the building. And we do know the building has been used by the IRGC. That may be the only truth we know since Trump and the Iran regime are allergic to the truth.
Anonymous says
This story published by MSN provides some helpful, additional detail: https://www.msn.com/en-us/news/world/whats-behind-the-attack-on-minab-girls-school-amid-us-iran-war/ar-AA1XF57R