President Trump on Saturday told reporters, without citing evidence, that he believes a deadly strike on a girls’ primary school in southern Iran last weekend was “done by Iran.”
“In my opinion, based on what I’ve seen, that was done by Iran…We think it was done by Iran, because they’re very inaccurate with their munitions, they have no accuracy whatsoever, it was done by Iran,” Mr. Trump said aboard Air Force One after attending the dignified transfer of six U.S. soldiers who were killed in an Iranian strike in Kuwait on March 1.
When pressed by a reporter if Mr. Trump’s assessment was accurate, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth responded that the Pentagon was “investigating,” adding that “the only side that targets civilians is Iran.”
Iranian-state media and health officials have reported that the strike on Feb. 28, the first day of the war, killed dozens of people, including schoolgirls ages 7 to 12. Iranian officials have blamed the U.S. and Israel for the strike.
Israel was not operating in the area, two sources told CBS News Friday. One of those, an Israeli source, told CBS News that Israel was not behind the strike and said that the Israeli Air Force was not operating near the school.
A person familiar with the ongoing inquiry also told CBS News Friday that U.S. investigators believe the U.S. may have been responsible.
In a statement, White House spokesperson Anna Kelly said that the “investigation is ongoing” into the incident.
“There are no conclusions at this time, and it is both irresponsible and false for anyone to claim otherwise,” Kelly said Friday. “As we have said, unlike the terrorist Iranian regime, the United States does not target civilians.”
The blast occurred in Minab, a city in the southern Iranian province of Hormozgan.
Footage filmed from a parking lot showed black smoke billowing from a damaged building adorned with murals featuring drawings of crayons, children and an apple.
CBS News geolocated the clip to a building in Minab. Iranian media identified the building as the Shajareh Tayyebeh elementary school. Saturdays are regular school days in Iran.
CBS News has also confirmed the building was located in close proximity to two sites controlled by the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. Iranian state media has said more than 170 people were killed in the explosion.
