Amaineh Nademi, a 33-year-old teacher, revisits the ruins of the Shajareh Tayyebeh Primary School in Minab, Iran. The structure, once filled with colorful classroom decorations, is now a collection of unstable concrete and debris. The site was destroyed on February 28 during the initial stages of the conflict between the US and Iran.
Official reports from the Minab prosecutor’s office state that 156 individuals lost their lives in the incident, including 120 children. Amaineh, who was teaching first-grade students when the attack occurred, recounted the chaos as the building collapsed, trapping her pupils beneath the rubble. Emergency responders, including Reza Besharati of the Iranian Red Crescent, described the harrowing scene, noting that the victims were discovered in fragments, making identification nearly impossible.
While US officials have not formally admitted to the strike, various media investigations suggest that faulty intelligence may have led to the school being misidentified as part of an adjacent IRGC facility. Military satellite data and historical maps confirm US operations in the region, though Washington maintains that its forces do not intentionally target civilians. The investigation remains officially ongoing.
In the aftermath, the local cemetery has become a place of daily mourning for grieving families. Mothers like Masoumeh Mehran Shekhabadi, whose nine-year-old daughter Setayesh was killed, continue to visit the gravesites nightly. For the local community, the tragedy has fueled both immense sorrow and lingering resentment toward the international military campaign.
