Trump says he believes Iran responsible for strike on Iranian girls' schoolpublished at 23:53 GMT
Image source, Getty ImagesMore from Donald Trump, who was asked by reporters aboard Air Force One about a strike on a girls' school in southern Iran last Saturday.
Iranian officials said more than 160 people were killed. BBC News has not been able to independently verify this death toll.
Aboard Air Force One on Saturday night, Trump was asked whether the US is responsible for the strike near an Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) base.
"No, in my opinion, based on what I've seen, that was done by Iran," replied the president.
A reporter then asked Secretary of Defense Pete Hesgeth if this is true. He replied: "We are investigating, but the only side that targets civilians is Iran".
Trump reiterated: "We think it was done by Iran...They are very inaccurate, as you know, with their munitions. They have no accuracy whatsoever. It was done by Iran."
Last week, Secretary of State Marco Rubio emphasised: "The US would not deliberately target a school", saying US forces had "no incentive to target civilian infrastructure".
The school was hit in the city of Minab as the US and Israel launched widespread strikes targeting Iran's military sites and leadership.
Iranian officials have blamed the US and Israel for the attack. Israel has said it was "not aware" of any IDF operations in the area but told the BBC it is looking into the incident.
Satellite imagery analysis by BBC Verify revealed multiple strikes and burn marks, suggesting the school was hit more than once.
But without more footage of the remnants of munitions, it's not possible to clearly identify who is responsible.
You can read more about BBC Verify's analylsis of the strike here.















