US general confirms American missile struck Iranian elementary school, killing at least 165

The top US commander in Europe confirmed to Congress on Thursday that the US military was responsible for the February 28 air strike that hit a girls' elementary school in southern Iran, killing at least 165 people, mostly pupils, according to China Media Group.

The strike was the result of a "chain of errors and mistakes," said Alexus G. Grynkewich, commander of US European Command and supreme allied commander Europe of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization, when he testified before the Senate Committee on Armed Services.

The confirmation comes one day after The New York Times reported that an ongoing Pentagon investigation had preliminarily determined a US Tomahawk missile struck the Iranian elementary school.

Officials briefed on the investigation told the newspaper that officers at the US Central Command generated the strike coordinates using outdated intelligence provided by the Defense Intelligence Agency, leading to the targeting mistake.

Footage released by Iran's authorities showed some of the missile fragments from the deadly strike appeared to be marked "Made in USA" along with names of US defense industry firms.

The February 28 strike on Shajarah Tayyebeh elementary school in Minab occurred during US operations targeting a nearby Iranian military base.

Iran has blamed the US for the strike, and Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian has condemned the deadly attack on the girls' school in southern Iran as "inhumane."