WASHINGTON — An ongoing military investigation has determined that Washington is responsible for a deadly Tomahawk missile strike on an Iranian elementary school, according to US officials and others familiar with the preliminary findings. The Feb. 28 strike on the Shajarah Tayyebeh elementary school in the city of Minab was the result of a targeting mistake by the US military, which was conducting strikes on an adjacent Iranian base of which the school building was formerly a part, the preliminary investigation found. Officers at US Central Command created the target coordinates for the strike using outdated data provided by the Defense Intelligence Agency, people briefed on the investigation said. Officials emphasized that the findings are preliminary and that there are important unanswered questions about why the outdated information had not been double checked. Striking a school full of children is sure to be recorded as one of the most devastating single military errors in recent decades. Iranian officials have said the death toll was at least 175 people, most of them children. While the overall finding was largely expected — the United States is the only country involved in the conflict that uses Tomahawk missiles — it has already cast a shadow on the US military operation in Iran. President Trump’s attempts to sidestep the blame for the strike have also already complicated the inquiry, leaving officials who have reviewed the findings showing US culpability expressing unease.The bombing of the school and its casualties involving children has become a focal point of the war, and if ultimately confirmed to be at the hands of the US, would also stand among the highest civilian casualty events caused by the American military operations in the last two decades. Trump initially suggested that Iran itself was responsible, despite the country not having Tomahawk missiles. He later said he could “live with” whatever the investigation reveals but when asked about the Times report Wednesday he told reporters: “I don’t know about it.” The preliminary finding prompted immediate calls for more information from the Pentagon. White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said that “the investigation is still ongoing.” Satellite images, expert analysis, a US official and public information released by the US military all suggested it was likely a US strike. On Monday, new footage also emerged showing what experts identified as a US-made Tomahawk cruise missile slamming into the military compound as smoke was already rising from the area where the school was located. Publicly available satellite imagery shows the school building was part of the military compound until about 2017, when a new wall was added to separate the two. A watchtower on the property was also removed. Around the same time, the imagery shows the walls surrounding the building were painted with murals in vibrant colors, primarily blue and pink. The school was clearly labelled as such in online maps and has an easily-accessible website full of information about students, teachers and administrators. International law governing warfare bars strikes on structures, vehicles and people that are not military objectives and combatants. Civilian homes, schools, medical facilities and cultural sites are generally off limits for military strikes. The proximity of a school to a valid military target does not change its status as a civilian site, said Elise Baker, a senior staff lawyer at the Atlantic Council, a Washington-based nonprofit think tank. If the US is found responsible, said Senator Tim Kaine during a briefing with journalists on Wednesday: “It’s either we’ve changed our traditional targeting rules or we made a mistake.” “If we’ve changed our traditional targeting rules and we no longer provide the same level of protection for civilians, that would be tragic,” Kaine said. — AgenciesWASHINGTON — An ongoing military investigation has determined that Washington is responsible for a deadly Tomahawk missile strike on an Iranian elementary school, according to US officials and others familiar with the preliminary findings. The Feb. 28 strike on the Shajarah Tayyebeh elementary school in the city of Minab was the result of a targeting mistake by the US military, which was conducting strikes on an adjacent Iranian base of which the school building was formerly a part, the preliminary investigation found. Officers at US Central Command created the target coordinates for the strike using outdated data provided by the Defense Intelligence Agency, people briefed on the investigation said. Officials emphasized that the findings are preliminary and that there are important unanswered questions about why the outdated information had not been double checked. Striking a school full of children is sure to be recorded as one of the most devastating single military errors in recent decades. Iranian officials have said the death toll was at least 175 people, most of them children. While the overall finding was largely expected — the United States is the only country involved in the conflict that uses Tomahawk missiles — it has already cast a shadow on the US military operation in Iran. President Trump’s attempts to sidestep the blame for the strike have also already complicated the inquiry, leaving officials who have reviewed the findings showing US culpability expressing unease.The bombing of the school and its casualties involving children has become a focal point of the war, and if ultimately confirmed to be at the hands of the US, would also stand among the highest civilian casualty events caused by the American military operations in the last two decades. Trump initially suggested that Iran itself was responsible, despite the country not having Tomahawk missiles. He later said he could “live with” whatever the investigation reveals but when asked about the Times report Wednesday he told reporters: “I don’t know about it.” The preliminary finding prompted immediate calls for more information from the Pentagon. White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt said that “the investigation is still ongoing.” Satellite images, expert analysis, a US official and public information released by the US military all suggested it was likely a US strike. On Monday, new footage also emerged showing what experts identified as a US-made Tomahawk cruise missile slamming into the military compound as smoke was already rising from the area where the school was located. Publicly available satellite imagery shows the school building was part of the military compound until about 2017, when a new wall was added to separate the two. A watchtower on the property was also removed. Around the same time, the imagery shows the walls surrounding the building were painted with murals in vibrant colors, primarily blue and pink. The school was clearly labelled as such in online maps and has an easily-accessible website full of information about students, teachers and administrators. International law governing warfare bars strikes on structures, vehicles and people that are not military objectives and combatants. Civilian homes, schools, medical facilities and cultural sites are generally off limits for military strikes. The proximity of a school to a valid military target does not change its status as a civilian site, said Elise Baker, a senior staff lawyer at the Atlantic Council, a Washington-based nonprofit think tank. If the US is found responsible, said Senator Tim Kaine during a briefing with journalists on Wednesday: “It’s either we’ve changed our traditional targeting rules or we made a mistake.” “If we’ve changed our traditional targeting rules and we no longer provide the same level of protection for civilians, that would be tragic,” Kaine said. — Agencies
