US senators seek release of investigation into deadly Iran school strike

A group of Democratic senators has urged the Trump administration to publicly release the findings of a US military investigation into a deadly airstrike that hit a girls’ school in Iran earlier this year. The lawmakers say Congress and the public deserve a clear explanation of what happened and what steps will be taken to prevent similar incidents in the future.

The letter, led by Senator Kirsten Gillibrand and signed by more than two dozen Democratic senators, calls on the Pentagon to complete its investigation without further delay. The lawmakers have asked Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and General Brad Cooper, the head of US Central Command, to brief Congress within the next week and publish an unclassified version of the report.

The strike took place on February 28 in the Iranian city of Minab during the opening day of the conflict between the United States and Iran. Earlier reports citing US officials familiar with the investigation suggested that American forces were likely responsible for the attack. Iranian authorities said the strike killed more than 175 students and teachers, making it one of the deadliest civilian incidents involving the US military in decades.

According to the senators, if those casualty figures are confirmed, the attack would represent the largest civilian loss linked to US military action since the bombing of a shelter in Iraq in 1991, when hundreds of civilians were killed. They argued there is no reason to keep an unclassified account of the investigation secret and said the government has both a legal and moral responsibility to explain what went wrong.

The Pentagon has confirmed that the investigation is still underway but has not provided a timeline for its completion. A department official said there are currently no new updates to announce.

Reports have indicated that the school was located next to a compound used by Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. Sources familiar with the investigation have also suggested that officials responsible for selecting military targets may have relied on outdated intelligence when planning the strike.

General Brad Cooper previously described the investigation as highly complex because of the school’s location near an active Iranian missile base. He told lawmakers earlier this year that investigators were carefully reviewing all available evidence before reaching final conclusions.

President Donald Trump has questioned whether the United States was responsible for the strike. Speaking in June, he said there was no clear evidence proving the missile that hit the school had been fired by US forces and suggested the full circumstances remained uncertain.

Iran has accused the United States of committing a war crime and has repeatedly condemned the attack. The US government has maintained that it does not deliberately target civilians and says protecting noncombatants remains a core principle during military operations.

In their letter, the senators stressed that the military must provide a detailed explanation of the incident along with specific recommendations to reduce the risk of civilian casualties in future conflicts. They also called for a plan outlining corrective measures and support for victims’ families where appropriate.

The lawmakers said transparency is essential to maintaining public trust and ensuring accountability whenever military operations result in civilian deaths. They argued that a full public accounting would help strengthen oversight and improve safeguards designed to protect innocent lives during armed conflict.