US military investigators believe it is possible that American forces were responsible for an apparent strike on an Iranian girls’ school that killed scores of children, but the investigation has not yet reached a final conclusion, two US officials told Reuters on Thursday.
According to the report, investigators currently assess it is likely that US forces carried out the strike, though the inquiry remains ongoing and officials have not finalized their findings.
The officials, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said it remains possible that new evidence could emerge that would absolve the United States of responsibility and point to another party.
Reuters reported that it was unable to determine additional details about the investigation, including what evidence led to the preliminary assessment, the type of munition that may have been used, who carried out the strike, or why the school may have been targeted.
The girls’ school in the southern Iranian city of Minab was struck on Saturday during the first day of US and Israeli attacks on Iran.
Iran’s ambassador to the United Nations in Geneva, Ali Bahreini, said the strike killed 150 students. Reuters could not independently verify the death toll.
Iran was quick to blame the US and Israel, and US Secretary of War Pete Hegseth confirmed on Wednesday that the military is investigating the incident.
“We’re investigating that. We, of course, never target civilian targets. But we’re taking a look and investigating that," Hegseth said during a news briefing.
The Pentagon referred Reuters’ questions to United States Central Command. A spokesperson for the command, Captain Timothy Hawkins, declined to comment on the details of the case.
The White House also did not directly address the investigation. Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt told Reuters in a statement that “While the Department of War is currently investigating this matter, the Iranian regime targets civilians and children, not the United States of America."
A senior Israeli official and a source familiar with joint planning cited by Reuters said that Israeli and US forces have divided their military operations in Iran by geography and target type.
Israel has focused its strikes on missile launch sites in western Iran, while US forces have targeted missile facilities and naval sites in southern areas of the country.
On Wednesday, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s Foreign Policy Adviser, Ophir Falk, told CNN that the strike on the Iranian school was caused by Iranian missiles.
“From what I understand, it's clearly an Iranian strike. It's a misfire from the Iranians. That's what I understand," said Falk, who pointed out that similar incidents occurred in Gaza a number of times “and I guess that's what's happened in Iran. But regardless, it's on the Iranian regime's hands."