A missile struck Shajareh Tayyebeh girls’ elementary school in the southern city of Minab, killing at least 165 people, most of them young pupils – and injuring nearly 100 more, Iranian officials reported on Sunday.
Rescue workers pulled children from the rubble throughout the day on Saturday and into the night.
Footage from the scene showed backpacks and schoolbooks scattered among twisted metal and broken concrete.
Parents waited anxiously outside, some screaming for news of their daughters, while ambulances rushed the wounded to local hospitals.
The attack happened during the opening hours of a major joint US-Israeli military operation against Iran, which Israel calls Operation Roaring Lion and the US names Epic Fury.
Iranian authorities blame a direct strike by US or Israeli forces.
The school sits close to an Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) naval base, and some reports suggest the military site was the intended target.
However, no official confirmation has emerged that the school itself held any military purpose.
Iranian state media first reported dozens dead, but the figure rose steadily:
from around 50 to over 100 by Saturday evening, then to 148, and finally 165 according to the local prosecutor in Minab, cited by IRNA and other outlets.
Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi condemned the incident as an “atrocious crime” and shared images of the destruction, calling the victims “innocent children”.
International voices quickly condemned the loss of life.
UNESCO expressed deep alarm, describing the strike on an educational institution as a grave violation of international humanitarian law and a threat to children’s right to learn.
The United Nations and several human rights groups called for an independent investigation into the incident.
Meanwhile, some analysts and open-source investigators note the school’s proximity to the IRGC facility – roughly 60 to 600 metres away, depending on the source – may explain why it was hit, possibly through targeting error.
Others urge caution, pointing out that schools remain protected sites under the laws of war, regardless of nearby military presence.
The broader offensive has already claimed high-profile casualties in Iran, including reports of Supreme Leader Khamenei’s death in a separate strike, though details remain unconfirmed.
Iran has vowed retaliation and launched its own attacks on US and Israeli positions.
For the families in Minab, the focus remains painfully simple: grieving lost children who left home for lessons and never returned.
As rescue efforts continue and the death toll may still rise, this single strike has become one of the most heartbreaking moments in an already devastating escalation.
