WANA (Mar 01) – In the early hours of February 28, as large-scale airstrikes by the United States and Israel targeted locations across Iran, a girls’ primary school in the southern city of Minab was also struck—an incident that, according to official sources, has become one of the deadliest attacks against civilians in recent years.

 

The “Shajareh Tayyebeh” School in Hormozgan Province was hit during class hours. Casualty figures were initially unclear, with local officials first reporting the deaths of several students. However, as rescue and debris-removal operations continued, the judiciary’s official news agency announced that the death toll had risen to 159, with 95 others injured.

 

Mohammad Radmehr, the special commander of Minab County, stated that emergency responders, service personnel, security forces, and local residents mobilized within minutes of the strike to rescue the wounded.

Girls’ School in Minab Hit in Israel–United States Airstrikes; Over 85 Students Killed. Social Media / WANA News Ageny

Girls’ School in Minab Hit in Israel–United States Airstrikes; Over 85 Students Killed. Social Media / WANA News Ageny

Images released from the scene show the school building reduced to rubble and the bodies of victims being carried away. Field reports indicate that the force of the explosion was so severe that large sections of the structure completely collapsed.

 

One man who entered the premises in the immediate aftermath described the scene: “We went in through the back entrance. We encountered the body of a teacher who had been torn in half by the blast. We are still counting and retrieving the bodies.”

 

Another witness rejected any suggestion of military use of the site, saying: “They knew this was a school. There hasn’t been a missile base here for years—it was relocated elsewhere. Perhaps the enemy’s intelligence was incomplete or mistaken, and they believed this was a missile command center.”

Girls’ School in Minab Hit in Israel–United States Airstrikes; Over 85 Students Killed. Social Media / WANA News Ageny

Girls’ School in Minab Hit in Israel–United States Airstrikes; Over 85 Students Killed. Social Media / WANA News Ageny

He added: “They may claim tomorrow—or even today in their news—that they struck Iran’s largest missile base. But this was a school. Either their intelligence was flawed, or those reporting to them provided biased information.”

 

A separate eyewitness argued the attack went beyond an intelligence failure: “The enemy is not pursuing a military objective; it is seeking to create fear. The high number of student casualties has terrified the city. Many neighborhoods in Minab have been evacuated.”

 

Amid the debris, the voices of colleagues mourning their losses could be heard. One teacher present at the scene said: “I work in education myself. This is a school. We had around 12 colleagues here. Just last night we were together at a ceremony. Today we feel their absence deeply.”

 

Describing the strike, he said: “The intention of the United States is to kill people; its aim is to destroy our country. They have completely devastated a girls’ school—and other schools as well. These were innocent children, civilians, our colleagues who were teaching, students who were learning.”

Field reports further indicate that minutes after the initial strike, a nearby clinic that was receiving the injured also sustained damage. Precise details regarding the extent of destruction at the medical facility have not yet been released.

 

Iranian officials have described the attack as “an act against civilians,” carried out amid ongoing diplomatic negotiations between Tehran and Washington. In a post on X, Iran’s foreign minister called the incident “a crime against the people of Iran” and emphasized that it “will not go unanswered.” The spokesperson for the Ministry of Foreign Affairs urged immediate action by the United Nations Security Council.

 

President Masoud Pezeshkian, in an official statement, described the incident as a “heart-wrenching tragedy” and extended condolences to the victims’ families. He ordered the full mobilization of medical and support services to provide urgent care to the injured and psychological and social assistance to affected families.

 

Minab, a city in southern Iran, is now enveloped in a heavy atmosphere of grief and insecurity. Domestic and regional reactions continue to mount, alongside growing calls for a thorough examination of the humanitarian and legal dimensions of the incident. As exchanges of fire persist, concerns are intensifying over the potential expansion of the conflict and its consequences for civilians.