Deadly Airstrike on Iranian Elementary School Claims 85 Lives
At least 85 people have been killed in an airstrike targeting an elementary school in southern Iran, according to the judiciary in Tehran. The majority of the deceased are reported to be schoolgirls aged between seven and twelve years old, as confirmed by regime-controlled news outlets Tasnim and Fars.
Attack Details and Immediate Aftermath
Missiles struck the Shajareh Tayyebeh school in the city of Minab, located in Hormozgan province, on Saturday morning. This assault coincided with strikes launched by the United States and Israel on Iran. A teacher from the school, speaking to the London-based outlet Middle East Eye, described witnessing bodies on classroom benches after hearing a blast while she was away briefly.
"I felt like I had gone mute. I couldn't speak," she said. "You could hear the sound of children crying and screaming." There were 170 girls present at the time of the attack, as Saturday marks the first day of the working week in Iran.
Footage shared on Telegram by accounts linked to the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps showed citizens digging through rubble and smoke billowing from the school building. Iranian state television broadcasted the devastation, highlighting the severity of the incident.
Iranian Response and International Strikes
Iran has vowed to retaliate following the US and Israel's attack. In a joint operation, the US military launched tomahawk missiles with Air Force and Navy jets. Iran responded by executing "revenge strikes" on US military bases across the Middle East, including targets in Bahrain, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, Iraq, and Jordan.
Iran's foreign minister, Abbas Araghchi, who has been leading negotiations with Donald Trump's envoys, seized on the news, posting on X: "The destroyed building is a primary school for girls in the south of Iran. It was bombed in broad daylight, when packed with young pupils. Dozens of innocent children have been murdered at this site alone."
The president warned that US troops could face casualties in the operation, though the exact toll from Iran's retaliatory strikes remains unclear.
Political Backlash and Internal Criticism
Trump is already facing intense political backlash for involving the US in a new war, with critics pointing to the disastrous history of Middle East conflicts. Conservative podcasting titan Tucker Carlson branded Trump's attack "absolutely disgusting and evil," signaling a fracture within the president's MAGA base.
Carlson's break with Trump suggests that the decision to engage in a major war with Iran could have legacy-altering consequences. This criticism comes just a week after Carlson met with the president in the White House, highlighting the rapid shift in alliances.
Former Congresswoman Marjorie Taylor Greene also denounced the president, claiming he is betraying voters who supported him for ending foreign wars. "Thousands and thousands of Americans from my generation have been killed and injured in never ending pointless foreign wars and we said no more," she wrote on Saturday.
Diplomatic Tensions and Regional Reactions
In the weeks leading up to the strike, Carlson debated US Ambassador to Israel Mike Huckabee, where Huckabee made controversial comments about Israel's territorial rights, stating, "It would be fine if they took it all." This provoked heated international condemnation from Egypt, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Oman, the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, and the League of Arab States.
Sources inside Iran have cautioned that reports from the regime should be viewed with skepticism, as a propaganda offensive is being waged under the fog of war. The situation remains fluid, with ongoing strikes and retaliations shaping the conflict's trajectory.
