US Investigators: Day 1 Girls School Strike in Iran Likely Carried Out by US Forces

Reuters reported that US military investigators have reached a tentative assessment that US forces were likely responsible for a strike on an Iranian girls school on the first day of the war, February 28, which killed scores of children. Two US officials speaking anonymously to Reuters said investigators have not yet reached a final conclusion and did not rule out new evidence pointing to another party. Reuters was unable to determine what munition was used, who specifically was responsible within the US military chain, or why the school may have been struck. Pentagon chief Pete Hegseth acknowledged on Wednesday that the US military was investigating the incident. The strike on the girls school was among the most internationally condemned incidents of the war, cited by Spain, France, UN human rights bodies, and multiple Arab governments as evidence of indiscriminate targeting. If confirmed as a US strike, it would add significant legal and political pressure on the administration and potentially affect allied participation in the campaign.