President Donald Trump suggested that Iran obtained a Tomahawk missile for use in a strike that killed 175 people at an Iranian school, but later admitted ignorance on the subject.
The Trump administration has given conflicting answers about the destruction of a girls’ elementary school in Minab on the first day of Operation Epic Fury, resulting in the deaths of around 175 people, most of whom were children. After a New York Times video analysis suggested that the munition responsible for the blast was a U.S. Tomahawk missile, Trump suggested that the missile might have been obtained and used by Iran.
“Well, I haven’t seen [the video], and I will say that the Tomahawk, which is one of the most powerful weapons around, is used by … is sold and used by other countries. You know that. And whether it’s Iran, who also has some Tomahawks — they wish they had more — but whether it’s Iran or somebody else, the fact that a Tomahawk — a Tomahawk is very generic, it’s sold to other countries — but that’s being investigated right now,” he said.
The Tomahawk is one of the most effective and coveted cruise missiles and has only been sold to the United Kingdom, the Netherlands, Australia, and Japan. No allies of Iran have the missile, and no evidence has emerged of any captures of a Tomahawk missile.
When pressed by a reporter minutes later, Trump admitted that he could be wrong and hadn’t looked into the matter.
“Because I just don’t know enough about it,” he answered when asked why he was the only one in his administration who proposed that the strike could have been due to an Iranian-obtained Tomahawk. “I think it’s something that I was told is under investigation, but Tomahawks are used by others. As you know, numerous other nations have Tomahawks. They buy them from us. But I will certainly, whatever the report shows, I’m willing to live with that report.”
Pressure on the United States has increased after several media outlets claimed a missile shown striking what looked to be the girls’ school was a U.S. Tomahawk missile. The school was located on an Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps base.
Trump had previously broadly blamed Iran for the strike.
“No. In my opinion and based on what I’ve seen, that was done by Iran,” he told reporters. “They’re very inaccurate, as you know, with their munitions.”
The actual number of dead civilians is impossible to know for sure, but Iranian Deputy Health Minister Ali Jafarian told Al Jazeera on Monday that at least 1,255 people have been killed in Iran overall, not distinguishing between military and civilian losses. Among those killed were 200 children and 11 healthcare workers, with most of the child deaths being at the Minab school.
Also in Trump’s address, he joked about the sinking of much of Iran’s navy, claiming he wanted to capture the ships but military commanders didn’t.
ISRAELI MILITARY SAYS 1,900 IRANIAN SOLDIERS AND COMMANDERS KILLED BY STRIKES ALONE
“I said, ‘Why don’t we just capture the ship? Why did we sink them?’ He said, ‘It’s more fun to sink them,'” Trump said, eliciting laughter.
“They say it’s safer to sink them. I guess it’s probably true,” he added.
