Iran school blast in Minab: Satellite images point to possible US airstrike near Revolutionary Guard site

Satellite images reviewed by The Associated Press and expert assessments indicate the Feb. 28 blast at Shajareh Tayyebeh Elementary School in Minab may be consistent with a targeted airstrike linked to nearby strikes on a Revolutionary Guard-associated compound. Iranian media reported more than 165 deaths, mostly children. The incident has drawn UN and human rights criticism.

Satellite images and expert reviews suggested the Feb. 28 blast at Shajareh Tayyebeh Elementary School in Minab likely followed US airstrikes. Iranian state media said more than 165 people died, mostly children, during school hours. The strike drew criticism from the United Nations and rights monitors. Iran blamed Israel and the United States, and neither country accepted responsibility.

Images taken on Wednesday and reviewed by The Associated Press showed much of the school reduced to rubble. A crescent-shaped gap appeared in the roof. Analysts said the narrow damage pattern matched a deliberate strike. Minab lies about 1,100 kilometres, or 680 miles, south-east of Tehran. The event marked the highest reported civilian death toll since the war began.

US airstrikes and Revolutionary Guard site near Minab school

Several details pointed towards a US strike, including a US military assessment of the incident. Pentagon guidance says such assessments begin after an initial finding of possible US responsibility. The school stood beside a Revolutionary Guard base in Hormozgan Province. It also sat near a naval brigade barracks. The US has acknowledged strikes in the province, including near the school.

Israel denied carrying out the strike and has aimed attacks closer to Israel, according to reporting. Israel has not reported strikes south of Isfahan, around 800 kilometres, or 500 miles, away. The US operated warships in the Arabian Sea within range. These included the USS Abraham Lincoln aircraft carrier. Central Command said, "It would be inappropriate to comment given the incident is under investigation.\"

At a Pentagon press briefing on Wednesday, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth addressed questions about the school strike. Hegseth said, \"All I can say is that were investigating that. We, of course, never target civilian targets. But were taking a look and investigating that.\" Iran continued to blame both the US and Israel. Neither has taken responsibility for the incident.

Satellite images show US airstrikes hit Revolutionary Guard compound buildings

Satellite photos indicated strikes also hit a nearby walled complex marked as the Seyyed Al-Shohada Cultural Complex of the Guard. Maps showed facilities such as a pharmacy, a gym, and a sports field. The images showed at least five buildings in the Guard area damaged. The site showed craters, burnt roof holes, and piles of debris near the school.

Older satellite imagery showed the school and the Guard compound were separated about a decade ago. A wall was later built between the two sites. Iranian map apps marked living quarters for the Assef Brigades about 150 metres, or 165 yards, from the school. These quarters sat inside the Revolutionary Guard compound. Farzin Nadimi said the 16th Assef Coastal Missile Group is part of the Guards navy.

Nadimi said the Assef Brigades belonged to the 1st Naval District, linked to the Strait of Hormuz. The strait is the narrow mouth of the Persian Gulf. About a fifth of traded oil and natural gas passes through it. The strait has been a key conflict point in the war. Nadimi also said the school likely taught daughters of Guard personnel.

Targeting schools and US airstrikes raise international law concerns

The strike drew condemnation from the UN secretary-general and global rights groups. The criticism came amid reports of other school strikes in Iran. Airwars, a London-based monitoring group, was reviewing three other school strikes with casualties. Over the last 48 hours, the US-based Human Rights Activists News Agency reported at least two additional schools were struck.

Elise Baker of the Atlantic Council said attacks on schools would breach laws of armed conflict. Baker said, \"Targeting schools would be a clear violation of international laws governing armed conflict.\" Baker added that strikes may target military aims and combatants only. Baker said, \"It was a civilian object.\" Baker said nearby Guard sites did not change the legal conclusion.

Damage pattern from US airstrikes suggests precision and multiple munitions

Three experts told the AP that imagery and scene videos pointed to several munitions hitting the area. The lack of bomb fragments made a full assessment harder. No independent agency has reached the site during the war to investigate. Still, specialists said the strike pattern looked concentrated within the walled compound. They said the surrounding neighbourhood showed no clear signs of impacts.

Corey Scher said, \"There are no craters or evidence of bombs hitting in the surrounding neighborhood, suggesting a great degree of accuracy.\" Scher said, \"All the strikes are clustered within the walled-off compound,\" and added, \"Thats one level of precision at the block level.\" Scher said, \"And then most of the strikes are basically leading to direct hits on buildings.\"

Scher said the damage suggested air-to-surface weapons. Scher said, \"They didnt explode in the air above the building,\" and added, \"It looks like the explosion happened at the time they hit the surface, whether it was the building or the ground.\" Sean Moorhouse said imagery could not confirm the exact munition type. Moorhouse said the damage matched multiple 2,000-pound, or 900-kilogram, high-explosive warheads.

Moorhouse said the precise impacts argued against claims of a failing Iranian missile. N.R. Jenzen-Jones said the school and Guard compound were hit by near-simultaneous strikes. Jenzen-Jones noted smoke in early videos rising from the Guard compound. Jenzen-Jones also cited witness accounts of several explosions and multiple damaged buildings. Jenzen-Jones said a targeting failure may have occurred.

Jenzen-Jones said, \"If indeed it is confirmed that an American or Israeli strike hit the school, there are several potential points of failure in the targeting cycle.\" Jenzen-Jones said, \"We might be seeing an intelligence failure, likely rather early in the process, which misidentified the target or failed to update a targeting list following the buildings change in use.\" After the strike, AP-verified state TV video showed dozens of fresh graves at a nearby cemetery.

With inputs from PTI