cross-posted from: https://news.abolish.capital/post/33264

US military investigators have said it is likely its forces were responsible for a strike on a girls’ school in Iran that killed scores of children and has been condemned as a war crime, according to a report by Reuters.​

The attack on the Minab girls’ school in southern Iran on Saturday is believed to have killed at least 165 people, mostly children under the age of 12.

​The UN’s education agency, Unesco, said the attack was a “grave violation of humanitarian law”.

​US war secretary Pete Hegseth said on Wednesday that the military was investigating the incident. Investigators have not reached a final conclusion and it is still unclear what evidence contributed to their assessment, Reuters reported, citing two unnamed officials.

It was also unclear what type of munitions were used and who was responsible, the outlet said.

An investigation by news outlet Middle East Eye determined that the attack on the school was a “double tap” strike – where a target is hit a second time in order to kill rescuers who come to the aid of the injured.

“When the first bomb hit the school, one of the teachers and the principal moved a group of students to the prayer hall to protect them,” a Red Crescent medic told the outlet, citing conversations he had with survivors.

“The principal called the parents and told them to come and pick up their children. But the second bomb hit that area as well. Only a small number of those who had taken shelter survived.”

​The UK has joined the war on Iran – which is illegal because it was not approved by the UN or US congress – by allowing the use of its bases for strikes against the country.

Prime minister Keir Starmer has claimed the UK’s involvement is an act of self-defence, despite the fact the US and Israel started the war.


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  • PetteriPano@lemmy.world
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    24 days ago

    Orange man already says that he thinks Iran did it.

    So, I think we can probably take that as a confession from his part.

  • pir8t0x@lemmy.ml
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    24 days ago

    Likely responsible

    So, not even admitting that you’re fully responsible???

    • Nikelui@lemmy.world
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      24 days ago

      They most likely used AI for the operation and want to be sure how much responsibility they can get out of it.

    • PhoenixDog@lemmy.world
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      24 days ago

      Every deployed soldier who was involved with the strike should be tried. As a former CAF member you don’t get the benefit of “oops” when you conduct an illegal and unlawful order.

  • wonderingwanderer@sopuli.xyz
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    25 days ago

    US war secretary Pete Hegseth said on Wednesday that the military was investigating the incident.

    You mean the same guy who said “None of those stupid rules of engagement”?!?

    Well I’m just shocked that this would happen. Shocked, I tell you…

  • Formfiller@lemmy.world
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    25 days ago

    What if we march on Washington and citizens arrest this administration and every Israeli backed politician and apologize to the world? I’d rather do that than destroy the world for genocidal pedofile religious extremist psychopaths

  • Godric@lemmy.world
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    25 days ago

    Absolutely monstrous to double tap a school. That doesn’t happen by accident, as so many things do in war. Disgusting.

    • chiliedogg@lemmy.world
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      24 days ago

      Even if the school had been a legitimate target in a legal war, double-tapping any site like that is a war crime. The second strike is specifically targeting people providing aid.

      • nickiwest@lemmy.world
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        24 days ago

        Kind of like a second strike on a boat meant to kill anyone who survived the first strike?

        It’s too bad that the US government doesn’t recognize the ICC. I doubt anyone in the Trump administration will ever be held accountable for their war crimes.

        • chiliedogg@lemmy.world
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          24 days ago

          A double-tap missile strike is actually worse than the second boat strikes. The point of them is to draw aid workers to the site and kill them for trying to help.

    • northernlights@lemmy.today
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      25 days ago

      How much you bet they let their AI choose targets and AI simply went for maximum efficiency.

      That moment when you realize you forgot to uncomment a line.

      #import law.international #TODO: uncomment before release
      

      Oops.

      • GreenKnight23@lemmy.world
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        25 days ago

        you’re absolute right! I shouldn’t have targeted a school. I am sorry. Next time I will do better. Thank you for telling me.

        • ThisLucidLens@lemmy.world
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          24 days ago

          Remember, I am a large language model and I am not qualified to give military advice. In any actual conflict you should always speak to your team of military advisors and strategists

          With that in mind, are there any other locations I can help you target today?

          Or, if you’d like, I can help draft an international press release denying accountability and blaming a software malfunction for our double-tap mistake?

      • NotMyOldRedditName@lemmy.world
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        25 days ago

        DoW: Our AI autonomously targeted a school, please let us use yours instead Anthropic so we can blame you instead if when this happens again!

    • chonglibloodsport@lemmy.world
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      25 days ago

      Accident and deliberate aren’t the only two options. I think the most likely cause is gross negligence on the part of intelligence (who may have been relying on outdated information).

      Gross negligence carries culpability. It’s still a war crime because the responsibility for due diligence is on the attackers.

      To show that it was deliberate is another matter entirely. There’d have to be evidence that they knew it was a school full of children and that they ordered the attack anyway. Why would they do that?

    • NotMyOldRedditName@lemmy.world
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      25 days ago

      I mean we don’t know for sure (afaik) it was intentionally the school, just that they were involved.

      Double taps are always planned though.

      Edit: Could have been bad intel that didnt indicate it was a school for example