Video appears to show US Tomahawk hitting base near school where 175 died
A new video appears to show a missile striking a building inside an Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps naval base in the southern Iranian town of Minab. The footage provides new visual evidence for the investigation into the Feb. 28 blast that Iran says destroyed a nearby elementary school and killed more than 175, mostly young girls.
The video was posted by Mehr News, a semi-official Iranian outlet, and verified by The New York Times. It shows a cruise missile approaching the base before impact, followed by a large explosion and smoke rising from the area.
The strike happened next to the Shajarah Tayyebeh elementary school, which sits beside a naval installation run by Iran’s Revolutionary Guard near the Strait of Hormuz.
U.S. officials have not confirmed who was responsible for the strike and said the incident remains under investigation.
Video captures missile moments before impact
The footage was filmed from a nearby construction site, then shared on X by Trevor Ball, a former U.S. Army Explosive Ordnance Disposal technician. He now works the with Bellingcat, an investigative group. The camera tracks the missile as it approaches the compound before slamming into a cluster of buildings inside the base.
Weapons analysts who reviewed the footage for CNN and ABC News said the missile’s shape matches a Tomahawk Land Attack Missile, known as a TLAM. The U.S. Navy fires Tomahawks from surface ships and submarines.
Sam Lair, a research associate at the James Martin Center for Nonproliferation Studies, told CNN the weapon’s profile matches that system.
“First, it fits the visual characteristics of a TLAM. The cruciform shape with centrally mounted wings and a tailkit at the back,” Lair said.
Israel does not operate Tomahawk missiles, according to weapons experts cited by CNN.
The video does not show the school itself being hit. Analysts said it shows one strike inside the naval compound during a broader wave of attacks in the area.
School hit during same strike wave
Satellite imagery, geolocated videos and witness footage show the school and multiple buildings inside the naval base were hit during the same series of strikes.
The New York Times reviewed satellite images showing several precision impact points across the compound, including direct hits on at least six Revolutionary Guard buildings. One structure inside the school complex suffered severe damage.
Investigators have not recovered weapon fragments from the school site. Without those fragments, confirming the munition that caused the blast is difficult.
Military analysts who reviewed the satellite images told the Times the damage pattern matches precision strikes across the base. One former Pentagon adviser described the impacts as “picture perfect” hits on their targets.
Trump blames Iran for the blast
President Donald Trump rejected the suggestion that U.S. forces carried out the strike.
“No, in my opinion and based on what I’ve seen, that was done by Iran,” Trump told reporters Saturday aboard Air Force One.
Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said the Pentagon is still examining the incident but defended U.S. operations.
“We’re certainly investigating,” Hegseth said. “But the only side that targets civilians is Iran.”
Iranian officials blame the U.S. for the strike.
U.S. Central Command has declined to say whether American forces carried out the attack, stating it would not comment while the investigation continues.
Access to the area has also been limited. Independent reporters and international investigators have not been able to reach the site directly.
The Minab strike remains the deadliest known civilian casualty incident since the U.S. and Israel began military operations against Iran.
Ella Rae Greene, Editor In Chief
