Daijiworld Media Network - Washington
Washington, Mar 14: Democratic lawmakers in the United States Congress are seeking answers from the United States Department of Defense after reports that a US airstrike during Operation Epic Fury hit a girls’ elementary school in Iran, reportedly killing at least 175 civilians, many of them children.
The strike is said to have taken place on February 28 near the town of Minab and targeted the Shajareh Tayyebeh Girls’ Elementary School. Lawmakers said the incident could be one of the deadliest civilian casualty events linked to recent US military operations in the Middle East.
Representative Gabe Vasquez of New Mexico has written to US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth seeking detailed information on the strike and the measures being taken to prevent civilian harm.
In the letter, Vasquez and other lawmakers stressed that civilians and civilian infrastructure must never be targeted and called for clarity on the safeguards used during the military campaign.
Separately, Representative Jason Crow and more than 120 Democratic members of Congress also asked the Pentagon to explain the circumstances of the strike and the broader civilian toll reported during the conflict in Iran.
The lawmakers said they were particularly alarmed by reports describing the attack on the girls’ school as the deadliest incident involving civilians in the campaign, with at least 175 people reportedly killed and around 100 students and staff injured.
They requested details about the military’s targeting process, risk assessments regarding civilian harm, and the procedures used to minimise casualties during operations.
The lawmakers also asked whether artificial intelligence systems were involved in identifying targets and whether human verification was required before authorising strikes.
A separate group of senators — including Mark Warner, Brian Schatz, Patty Murray, Jeanne Shaheen, Jack Reed and Chris Coons — also issued a statement condemning the reported attack and calling for a thorough and impartial investigation.
They described the killing of schoolchildren as unacceptable under any circumstances and urged authorities to determine how the strike occurred.
Responding to the concerns, Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said the US military has launched a formal investigation into the incident. He said the inquiry would examine all aspects of the strike and would continue until the facts are fully established.
Hegseth also emphasised that the United States does not intentionally target civilians and pledged that the findings of the investigation would be made public once completed.
The controversy comes amid increasing scrutiny of civilian casualties linked to the war in Iran under President Donald Trump. According to lawmakers, more than 1,000 civilians may have been killed so far during the campaign, with concerns raised over strikes affecting schools, hospitals and other civilian infrastructure.