New evidence challenges Trump claim about deadly girls school strike

On 28 February, a missile hit Shajareh Tayyebeh School - a girl's primary school in Minab, Hormozgan Province, Iran. Iranian authorities have said the strike killed at least 165 people, many of them children.

Speaking on Air Force One on Saturday, President Donald Trump denied American responsibility for the attack. "From what I've seen, that was done by Iran," he told reporters.

However, newly released video suggests that it was a US Tomahawk missile that hit the school, in an attack on a next door naval base.

The video below, shared by Mehr News Agency and geolocated by Sky News' Data and Forensics team, shows the moment a missile hit the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps naval base in Minab, a stone's throw away from Shajareh Tayyebeh School.

In the video, thick smoke can already be seen billowing from the direction of the school, indicating it had recently been struck.

Analysis of the video by munitions expert N.R. Jenzen-Jones, director of Armament Research Services (ARES), confirms the munition used as a Tomahawk missile, identifiable by the unique wings protruding from either side of the body. If he is correct it suggests the school was hit by US forces.

"The video shows a Tomahawk missile striking a target," Mr Jenzen-Jones said. "Given the belligerents, that indicates it is a US strike, as Israel is not known to possess Tomahawk missiles.

"Despite various claims circulating online, the munition in question is clearly not an Iranian Soumar missile."

Tomahawk missile wings are folded away during launch and unfold when the missile is airborne.

Video from US Central Command, filmed on the same day the school was struck, shows Tomahawk missiles being launched from a US warship as part of its operations in Iran.

It does not amount to evidence that any of those specific guided missiles hit the school, but it shows they were being used.

Secretary of War Pete Hegseth has said that the school strike remains under investigation, while saying that "the only side that targets civilians is Iran".

Precision strikes

Satellite imagery of the school building and naval base show extensive damage to numerous buildings following the strikes.

Circular holes can be seen in the centre of three of the buildings on the naval base that were targeted in the US strikes, including a building listed as a clinic and pharmacy.

A similar hole can be seen in the section of the school building still standing.

The shape and placement of the holes are revealing.

"The satellite imagery taken together with known US operational practice makes it almost certain that these strikes were conducted with precision guided munitions," Mr Jenzen-Jones, told Sky News.

Change on satellite imagery

Imagery from 2013 shows the school building situated within the IRGC compound. However, a wall appears to have been built between 2013 and 2016, separating the school building and its grounds from the naval base.

Later satellite imagery from 2018 shows the newly built walls painted in bright colours. The ground surrounding the school appears to have been decorated with chalk markings - a hand-drawn sports court and decorative patterns can be seen.

The information revealed in the newly released video from Minab, calls into question Mr Trump's claim.

UN experts strongly condemned the strike on the school last week, calling it "a grave assault on children, on education, and on the future of an entire community".

They highlighted the fact that schools are civilian buildings and that children are expressly protected under international humanitarian law.

Aftermath

Videos of the aftermath of the strike show workers digging through the rubble of the school building. A backpack can be seen covered in dust amid the debris.

On 3 March, Mehr News Agency released photographs of rows of graves being dug at the Minab Cemetery. The picture shows 77 dug graves, with at least 23 more in the process.

Additional production from Michelle Inez Simon.

The Data x Forensics team is a multi-skilled unit dedicated to providing transparent journalism from Sky News. We gather, analyse and visualise data to tell data-driven stories. We combine traditional reporting skills with advanced analysis of satellite images, social media and other open source information. Through multimedia storytelling we aim to better explain the world while also showing how our journalism is done.

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