Trump suggests Iran struck girls’ school with US Tomahawk

The US president has claimed that the “powerful” yet “generic” cruise missile is used by many countries, including Iran

US President Donald Trump has suggested that Iran could have conducted the deadly strike on a girls’ school in the southern city of Minab using a Tomahawk cruise missile – a weapon system operated exclusively by the US in the current conflict.

The February 28 attack on the Shajareh Tayyebeh elementary school killed more than 160 people, most of them girls aged 7-12, making it the deadliest single incident of the ongoing US-Israeli military campaign against Iran. The school is next to an Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) facility that was targeted during the same wave of strikes.

Videos geolocated by media outlets appear to show a Tomahawk missile striking the naval compound next to the school. Asked by reporters whether Washington would accept responsibility, Trump instead suggested that the missile could have been used by Iran or “somebody else.”

“Well, I haven’t seen it,” Trump said. “And I will say that the Tomahawk, which is one of the most powerful weapons around… it’s sold and used by other countries, you know that. And whether it’s Iran, who also has some Tomahawks – they wish they had more. But whether it’s Iran or somebody else… the fact that a Tomahawk is very generic, it’s sold to other countries, but that’s being investigated right now.”

Read more

Trump did not provide any evidence that Iran possesses Tomahawk missiles or the means to launch them. The long-range cruise weapon – capable of flying 1,000 miles at low altitude to evade air defenses – is manufactured by Raytheon and primarily deployed by the US Navy from warships and submarines. Just a handful of US allies, including the UK and Australia, operate the system; the Netherlands and Japan are in the process of acquiring the missiles.

Just days ago, Trump directly accused Tehran of destroying the school with its own “very inaccurate” weapons.

Read more

Pressed again about the strike on Monday, Trump acknowledged that he did not know enough about the incident and said he would accept the results of the ongoing investigation.

“It’s something that I was told is under investigation… but Tomahawks are used by others,” he reiterated.

The Pentagon has said the incident is under review. Officials cited in US media reports have suggested the school may have been hit accidentally, possibly due to outdated intelligence or targeting errors.