(10 March 2026) - The International Women's Initiative (IWI) condemns in the strongest possible terms the horrendous airstrike on the Shajareh Tayyebeh Girls' Primary School in Minab, southern Iran, on 28 February 2026. We extend our deepest condolences to the families of the victims and to the people of Iran.

According to local official reports and international news agencies, the strike directly hit the school while classes were underway, killing at least 165 people—the vast majority of them girls between the ages of 7 and 12, along with their teachers. The building was largely destroyed. These were not soldiers. These were children learning to read and write.

Evidence increasingly points toward U.S. responsibility for this attack. The strike occurred on the first day of joint U.S.-Israeli military operations on Iran. U.S. War Secretary Pete Hegseth has confirmed the Pentagon is investigating the incident. According to multiple news agencies, including the Associated Press and Reuters, U.S. military investigators have found that American forces were likely responsible. Visual investigations indicate the school was hit by a precision strike occurring simultaneously with U.S. attacks on a nearby naval base. U.S. military officials have stated that operations in southern Iran, including the Minab area, were conducted by U.S. forces, while Israeli operations were focused on the north. The Israeli Occupation Forces have stated they were not aware of any operation in that area.

Intentional attacks against educational institutions constitute a grave violation of international humanitarian law and are considered a war crime. Schools are protected spaces. Attacking them endangers students and teachers while undermining the fundamental right to education. Even if a school is in proximity to a military target, attacking parties are obligated under international law to avoid or minimize harm to civilians. This duty was catastrophically failed.

The names of the victims have been published. They include Fatemeh, Zahra, Reyhaneh, Maedeh, Baran, Bahar, Kimia, Hana, Helia, Vania, Yasna, Selma, and scores of other young girls whose futures were stolen. These were not statistics. They were children with names, families, and dreams.

The International Women's Initiative demands a full, independent, and transparent investigation. The United States must immediately release the findings of its internal investigation and cooperate with an independent international inquiry. The world must know why an active school full of children was targeted. Where evidence of war crimes is found, those responsible—regardless of rank or official capacity—must be held accountable under international law. We call for the official recognition of every victim by name, and for the responsible state to provide full reparations to the families of the deceased and injured, including compensation and psychological support.

This attack is not isolated. Reports indicate at least 20 schools have been destroyed during ongoing U.S.-Israeli strikes on Iran, with approximately 120 schoolchildren and teachers wounded. The Iranian Red Crescent Society reports the civilian death toll from the conflict has climbed to 1,332, with approximately 30 percent of those killed being minors. On 5 March 2026, two boys' schools in Parand, southwest of Tehran—Shahid Bahonar Middle School and Arian Pouya Elementary School—sustained significant damage from strikes, with blown-out windows and collapsed classroom walls.

The strike on Shajareh Tayyebeh Girls' School represents a catastrophic failure to protect civilian life. Whether this was targeting misidentification, flawed intelligence, or reckless disregard for civilian proximity, the result is the same: more than 165 people, mostly young girls, are dead. The International Women's Initiative maintains that the protection of children and the safeguarding of educational institutions must be paramount, even—and especially—during armed conflict.

We call on the international community, the United Nations, and all member states to insist on accountability, to demand transparency, and to work toward an immediate de-escalation of hostilities that continue to claim the lives of the most vulnerable.

We remember the names. We demand justice. We will not look away.

For more information, please contact us at: press@theiwi.org