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war crimes
Question for Hegseth: Did US Military Rely on AI Targeting for Bombing of Iranian School?
The US military has publicly confirmed using "a variety of advanced AI tools" in the Iran assault to "help us sift through vast amounts of data in seconds."
Mar 12, 2026
A group of more than 120 Democrats in the US House on Thursday pressed Pentagon Secretary Pete Hegseth on whether American forces used artificial intelligence in the deadly bombing of an elementary school in southern Iran.
"What is the role of artificial intelligence, if any, in selecting targets, assessing intelligence, and making legal determinations during Operation Epic Fury?" the Democratic lawmakers, led by Rep. Sara Jacobs (D-Calif.), asked in a letter to Hegseth. "If AI is used, is it subject to human review and at what point? Was artificial intelligence, including the use of the Maven Smart System, used to identify the Shajareh Tayyebeh school as a target? If so, did a human verify the accuracy of this target?"
The letter to Hegseth was sent a day after The New York Times reported that Pentagon investigators preliminarily concluded that US forces were responsible for the bombing of the girls' school in Minab, Iran—a strike that killed at least 175 people, mostly children.
The Democratic lawmakers cited the Times' reporting in their letter, writing that they "are particularly disturbed" by the school bombing, which President Donald Trump initially—and without a shred of evidence—tried to pin on Iran before later saying he didn't "know enough about it" to assign blame.
According to the Times, the school strike "was the result of a targeting mistake by the US military, which was conducting strikes on an adjacent Iranian base of which the school building was formerly a part."
The US military has confirmed using AI tools in its illegal war on Iran, which is being carried out in partnership with Israeli forces that have used artificial intelligence extensively in their genocidal assault on the Gaza Strip.
“Our war fighters are leveraging a variety of advanced AI tools," Brad Cooper, the head of the US Central Command, said in a video message released Wednesday. "These systems help us sift through vast amounts of data in seconds so our leaders can cut through the noise and make smarter decisions faster than the enemy can react."
NBC News reported earlier this week that the US military is "using AI systems from data analytics company Palantir to identify potential targets in the ongoing attacks."
"The use of Palantir’s software, which relies in part on Anthropic’s Claude AI systems, comes as Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth aims to put artificial intelligence at the heart of America’s combat operations," the outlet noted.
During his tenure as head of the Pentagon, Hegseth has worked to dismantle initiatives aimed at reducing civilian killings, scoffed at "stupid rules of engagement," and touted "maximum lethality" as a top priority for the US military.
In their letter on Thursday, the House Democrats wrote that mass civilian deaths in the US-Israeli war on Iran are "alarming yet unsurprising" given Hegseth and Trump's open contempt for legal constraints on American forces.
"The US and Israel have reportedly struck or impacted numerous civilian sites—including schools, hospitals, gymnasiums, public gathering spaces, and a UNESCO heritage site," the lawmakers wrote. "Civilians and civilian infrastructure may under no circumstances be the object of attack and must at all times be respected and protected by all parties."
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Every Senate Dem But Fetterman Signs Call for Probe of Iran School Massacre
"Massive civilian casualty incidents like the attack in Minab are not only detrimental to the Iranian people," argued the rest of the Senate Democratic Caucus, "but they also undermine US national security interests."
Mar 11, 2026
Just a week after Sen. John Fetterman helped Republicans block a war powers resolution intended to halt President Donald Trump and Israel's assault on Iran, the Pennsylvania Democrat again bucked his own party on Wednesday by not signing on to a letter calling for a probe into an apparent US bombing of a girls' school in the Iranian city Minab that killed around 175 people, mostly young children.
As with the unsuccessful resolution from Sen. Tim Kaine (D-Va.), Fetterman was the only member of the Senate Democratic Caucus—which includes Sens. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) and Angus King (I-Maine)—who didn't endorse the letter to US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth.
Fetterman has signaled support for Operation Epic Fury and promoted Trump's narrative that it's motivated by preventing Iran from developing a nuclear weapon. During a Tuesday appearance on Newsmax, he claimed that "negotiating treaties" and coordinating with regional allies "never worked," and wondered why Democrats can't "agree what's happened is a very, very positive development for world peace."
Asked for comment about Democrats' letter, Fetterman told Reuters that he supports the military operation and "the United States never intentionally targets civilians, including its own citizens, unlike Iran. Everyone agrees it was a tragedy. Everyone agrees on performing a full investigation."
A spokesperson for Fetterman added that "whether the senator is on a letter or not, he fully stands behind a comprehensive investigation into this tragedy."
Led by Kaine, Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-NY), and Sens. Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii), Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.), and Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), the rest of the caucus began the letter by expressing "grave concern" about the bombing—which paramedics and victims' relatives have said was a so-called "double-tap" airstrike—and stressing that the 12-day assault "is a war of choice without congressional authorization."
"Nonetheless, as these military actions continue, the United States and Israel must abide by US and international law, including the law of armed conflict," they wrote. "There must be a swift investigation into the strikes on this school and any other potential US military actions causing civilian harm, and the findings must be released to the public as soon as possible, along with any measures to pursue accountability."
"Massive civilian casualty incidents like the attack in Minab are not only detrimental to the Iranian people, who have already suffered so much at the hands of its own government, but they also undermine US national security interests," the Democrats argued.
The letter cites a Tuesday update from the US-based Human Rights Activists News Agency that the war has killed more than 1,245 civilians and injured over 12,000. The Iranian government said earlier this week that the death toll is above 1,300.
The Senate Democrats didn't just focus on the school; they also sounded the alarm about US and Israeli "use of explosive weapons in major Iranian cities and populated areas," which has damaged "multiple hospitals, cultural heritage sites, and other critical civilian infrastructure."
"These civilian harm events are not taking place in a vacuum," the senators wrote, pointing to Hegseth's recent remarks that Operation Epic Fury would have "no stupid rules of engagement" and there will be "death and destruction from the sky all day long."
They warned that "this rhetoric only serves to endanger civilians, including American citizens, in the region and around the globe. The United States is a party to the Geneva Conventions and bound by international humanitarian law, including the principles of distinction, proportionality, and precaution. These are binding and non-negotiable standards designed to protect innocent human life, and it is unacceptable for the secretary of defense to suggest otherwise."
"Your comments reflect a broader pattern of policies abandoning the Defense Department's commitment to minimizing civilian harm in US military operations," the lawmakers noted, referencing budgetary and personnel cuts, including the removal of senior, nonpartisan judge advocate general officers. "These actions, combined with your comments and the horrific reports of civilian casualties stemming from the war against Iran, suggest the administration has abandoned its duty to protect civilians."
The senators demanded Hegseth's responses to a list of questions about the February 28 school strike, compliance with rules to prevent war crimes, the military's efforts to prevent and mitigate civilian harm, and the use of artificial intelligence no later than March 18.
The Wednesday letter came as the The New York Times reported on the preliminary findings of a Pentagon probe that found the strike on the school in Minab "was the result of a targeting mistake by the US military, which was conducting strikes on an adjacent Iranian base of which the school building was formerly a part."
It also came as a coalition of peace groups launched a national campaign calling on Schumer and House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) to resign from their leadership roles over their failure to sufficiently fight back "against a war-crazed Trump administration."
While Hegseth and Trump have so far declined to take responsibility for the school massacre, Sen. John Kennedy (R-La.)—who supports the US-Israeli war on Iran—has apologized for the bombing at least twice this week, saying: "We made a mistake... I'm just so sorry it happened."
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‘My Memory Is Being Demolished’: US-Israeli Bombings Damage Protected World Heritage Sites in Iran
"War fans say that whatever gets destroyed, someone will build a better one later," said one Iranian scholar. "Fine, go ahead and build a new Golestan Palace, a new Chehel Sotun, and a new Taq-e Bostan too."
Mar 11, 2026
In addition to killing and injuring thousands of Iranians, the US-Israeli war in Iran is bringing ruin upon some of the oldest and most cherished historical landmarks in the world.
Several centuries-old locations, designated as World Heritage sites by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO), have suffered damage from bombings since the US and Israel launched the war on February 28. As UNESCO noted last week, these sites are protected under multiple statutes in international law.
"Iran is home to one of the richest concentrations of historical sites on Earth, representing civilizations that stretch from the Elamites and Achaemenid Persians to Islamic dynasties and modern Iran," wrote Haley Fuller for Military.com on Wednesday.
"Iran contains dozens of sites recognized by the international community as having 'outstanding universal value,'" she said. "The country currently has nearly 30 locations listed as UNESCO World Heritage sites, including ancient cities, monumental architecture, and archaeological landscapes spanning thousands of years."
UNESCO said that it has communicated the coordinates of protected sites to all parties in the conflict, including Israel. Iranian authorities, meanwhile, had already begun marking important historical sites with the internationally recognized Blue Shield symbol, established in the 1954 Hague Convention to designate protected areas. But several have still been attacked.
According to multiple local reports, as well as photos and videos posted to social media, an Israeli airstrike on Monday shattered windows, scattered debris, and broke doors at the Chehel Sotoun Palace and other sites within the 17th-century Naqsh-e-Jahan Square in the city of Isfahan.
The city was the capital of Persia under the Safavid dynasty from 1501-1736, and it boasts some of the country's most significant works of architecture and art. The Israeli military was reportedly targeting the governor’s building, which sits near the square.
"Chehel Sotoun is renowned for its extensive frescoes depicting historical battles, royal receptions, and scenes from Persian mythology, which are among the largest, most unique examples of Persianate painting," wrote Sarvy Geranpayeh in a report for The Art Newspaper.
While most of the site's interior paintings survived the attack, provincial officials said the site's famous mirror-work decorations were damaged, and a 17th-century fresco depicting the Iranian Safavid ruler Shah Tahmasp and the Indian Mughal Humayun sustained a large crack.
Several other buildings in the square also took damage, Geranpayeh reported:
Authorities reported that the 17th-century Ali Qapu Palace had its doors and windows shattered, while the 17th-century Jame Abbasi Mosque, also known as Shah Mosque, sustained damage to sections of its iconic turquoise and calligraphic tiles...
Several other sites within the Safavid-era Dawlatkhaneh complex also reportedly suffered damage. These include the 17th-century Rakeb-Khaneh pavillion (House of the Jockey), originally built to store the equestrian equipment and harnesses of the royal stables, Ashraf Hall, a highly decorative residential structure associated with the Safavid court, and the nearby 15th-century Teymouri Hall, a Timurid-era building later converted into the Natural History Museum.
A previous attack on March 1, the second day of the war, caused damage to the only designated UNESCO World Heritage site in Tehran, the Golestan Palace, which is more than 400 years old.
Geranpayeh reported that the building was left "strewn with debris, its windows blown out and its distinctive mirror and glasswork damaged."
Some of the architecture that has come under attack is even older. On March 8, Israeli strikes on Khorramabad reportedly damaged the structures surrounding the Falak-ol-Aflak Castle, which is more than 1,800 years old, dating back to the Sassanid Empire in the 3rd century.
The US Committee of the Blue Shield, an international organization tasked with protecting heritage sites in times of war and crisis, said it was “disturbed” by the United States' expressions of disregard for the laws of war.
The committee drew attention to comments made by US Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth last week that “America, regardless of what so-called international institutions say, is unleashing the most lethal and precise air power campaign in history... All on our terms with maximum authority. No stupid rules of engagement.”
According to the Iranian Red Crescent Society, more than 19,000 civilian buildings have been damaged since the war began less than two weeks ago, including hospitals, residential buildings, and schools.
One attack, reportedly by the US, on a girls' school in Minab on the first day of the war, resulted in the slaughter of around 175 people, mostly children ages 7-12. According to the World Health Organization more than 1,300 people have been killed and 9,000 injured in total since February 28.
“The failure to observe international humanitarian law, including numerous international conventions to which the US is a state party, as well as customary international law, can lead to the commission of war crimes," the US Blue Shield Committee said. It added that this disregard extends to cultural sites as well.
"The destruction of cultural heritage is irreversible. It erases identity, history, and the shared memory of civilizations," the committee said. "No military or political objective justifies the willful or negligent destruction of humanity’s common inheritance. Such destruction is also one of the actions that can make returning to a state of peace more difficult."
According to a New York Times report on Wednesday, the destruction of culturally important sites has only heightened the anger Iranians feel as their country has fallen under attack.
"War fans say that whatever gets destroyed, someone will build a better one later," Mojtaba Najafi, a prominent Iranian scholar and researcher, said in a post to social media.
"Fine, go ahead and build a new Golestan Palace, a new Chehel Sotun, and a new Taq-e Bostan too," he continued, referring to another site which came under threat from US airstrikes on Iranian nuclear facilities in June 2025.
“For me, ancient monuments are as important as human lives, because they connect me to my past,” Najafi said. “And their destruction means my memory is being demolished."
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