U.S. Missile Strike Massacres Iranian Girls' School in Minab, Investigators Say; Death Toll Disputed

Investigators and open‑source analysts say newly released footage and geolocation work point to a Tomahawk cruise missile striking an IRGC facility beside Shajarah Tayyebeh girls’ school in Minab on Feb. 28.

“International Desk, Mar 9 (EFE)”

Agencia EFE

Iranian outlets and officials link the blast to heavy civilian casualties.

Agencia EFE

Anadolu Agency reported that newly released footage and open‑source analyses suggest a US Tomahawk missile struck an IRGC facility beside a girls’ school in Minab on Feb. 28, likely causing heavy casualties.

IBTimes India described investigative footage and analysis that suggest a US Tomahawk cruise missile struck an Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) naval facility next to an elementary school in Minab during a wave of attacks on Feb. 28.

Novinite noted that U.S. military officials, including General Dan Caine, acknowledged that Tomahawk missiles fired by the U.S. Navy struck the site, and Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said a formal investigation is underway.

NPR summarized that the clip appears to show a cruise missile striking a building inside a walled compound where around 165–180 people — many of them girls and school staff — were killed.

Multiple investigative teams and weapons experts used geolocation, debris‑matching, satellite imagery and munition‑shape analysis to link the video to the Minab strike and to a Tomahawk‑type weapon, with reporting saying only the U.S. is known to field that munition in the conflict.

Anadolu Agency noted that Bellingcat geolocated video from Iran’s Mehr News Agency showing a Tomahawk impact and smoke rising from the adjacent school.

Anadolu Agency

IBTimes India said geolocation from the video and matching debris patterns helped investigators place the strike, and that experts said the projectile closely matches a Tomahawk, which the article described as a weapon the U.S. is the only party in the conflict known to possess.

Agencia EFE reported that the footage, published by Iran’s Mehr news agency and verified by The New York Times and The Washington Post after consultation with weapons experts, appears to show a missile hitting a naval base adjacent to the school.

Moneycontrol cited munitions experts who said the projectile’s shape resembles a Tomahawk cruise missile, which the article described as a long‑range weapon fielded by the U.S. Navy and not known to be used by other parties in the conflict.

The death toll from the Minab attack is disputed across reporting.

“A video, posted by Iran’s semiofficial Mehr News Agency, shows a missile hitting a building inside the base while dust and smoke are already rising from the nearby school compound — indicating the school had likely been hit moments earlier”

CNBCTV18

Iranian officials and state media cite figures ranging from roughly 150 up to about 180 dead.

Some Western outlets noted they could not independently verify those totals.

CNBCTV18 reported that Iran’s UN ambassador in Geneva said the attack killed about 150 students, and that a New York Times‑cited report put the death toll at as many as 175 people.

IBTimes India said reports put the toll at about 175 people, many of them children.

Agencia EFE wrote that analysts believe the strike killed about 180 people, most of them children.

NPR summarized a range of around 165–180 people, many of them girls and school staff, were killed.

Moneycontrol added that Iranian authorities say the strike killed as many as 175 people, including many children, though The Washington Post said it could not independently verify those casualty figures.

U.S. officials have opened an investigation even as U.S. public statements have been mixed and U.S. leaders publicly rejected responsibility.

Novinite said U.S. military officials, including General Dan Caine, acknowledged that Tomahawk missiles fired by the U.S. Navy struck the site and that Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said a formal investigation is underway.

IBTimes India

CNBCTV18 reported that an investigation into the Minab strike is ongoing and that new evidence could still exonerate the United States or implicate another party.

Anadolu Agency observed the evidence contradicting President Trump's comment that it 'was done by Iran' and that 'they are very inaccurate with their munitions.'

IBTimes India noted that the U.S. denied bombing the school and that President Donald Trump rejected the allegation.

International bodies and rights experts have called for full probes and warned of possible violations of international humanitarian law if civilians or schools were deliberately hit.

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Novinite reported that UNESCO condemned the deaths as a serious breach of protections for schools and called for a full probe under international humanitarian law.

Mid-Day

CNBCTV18 wrote that the UN human rights office has called for an investigation and said responsibility lies with the forces that carried out the attack, and that under international humanitarian law deliberately targeting civilian sites such as schools could amount to a war crime.

Anadolu Agency noted the strike’s timing amid wider strikes in southern Iran and reporting on multiple impact sites.

Agencia EFE also emphasized independent verification efforts by major outlets and experts in assessing the footage.