Deadly Iran wedding attack was direct hit by US made weapon
Picture: Reuters
Four people were killed and at least 68 others were injured in a devastating explosion at a wedding ceremony in southern Iran last Tuesday. Reuters verified photos and videos of the attack. After closely examining the verified footage, weapons experts said the attack was the result of a direct hit by a US made weapon. It was not a strike that hit another target and then ricocheted into the wedding venue.
The incident in the small city of Kuhestak has once again raised deep concerns over the risk of civilian casualties in the Iran US war. In February, a missile strike on an Iranian school killed many children and teachers. The wedding attack was the most devastating incident since then.
US Central Command said its forces carried out multiple airstrikes across southern Iran on September 1. The targets were air defense systems belonging to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, radar systems and communications facilities. The strikes were carried out in retaliation for earlier attacks by Tehran on US military installations in the Gulf region.
At a White House press briefing on Thursday, US Vice President JD Vance said the United States was investigating the incident. He said, “We are investigating it because of course we are aware of it. We want to know what the truth is.”
The US military said it was aware of the reports and was looking into the matter. Witnesses told Reuters that many people had gathered at a house in Kuhestak for a wedding on the night of the attack. According to verified and expert reviewed photos and videos, a bomb directly struck the roof of the house while the ceremony was taking place.
Reuters showed videos and photos of the incident to at least four military weapons experts. They said the extent of the damage indicated that it was a direct strike. They ruled out the possibility that it was an accidental impact after another target was hit.
Three of the experts said the weapon used in the attack was not an Iranian air defense missile. They said it was likely a US made weapon.
One expert said the weapon may have veered off course from its original target. Gareth Collett, a former British Army brigadier and a doctorate holder in explosives engineering, said, “With the number of bombs being dropped, even with the world’s most precise guidance system, this kind of mistake can happen.”
Photos showed blood-stained shoes scattered among the rubble after the attack along with traditional wedding decorations from southern Iran.
In a voice note sent to Reuters shortly after the attack, a witness said, “Kuhestak has been destroyed. Four, five, ten houses have been destroyed. Many people are trapped under the rubble. May God help us.”
US officials said the telecommunications tower was the target. Photo: Reuters
Two US officials speaking on condition of anonymity said the US military carried out an attack in the Kuhestak area on September 1. Their main target was the city’s telecommunications tower.
Satellite images showed that the tower was about 135 meters from the wedding venue. According to Iranian media reports, the tower was struck at around 9:30 pm. One US official said the government was examining various possibilities behind the casualties at the wedding venue. These included a US strike, debris from an Iranian air defense missile or a misfired interceptor missile.
The Balochistan Human Rights Documentation Network and Halvash reported that at least four people were killed and 68 were injured in the incident. Three of the four people killed were wedding guests. They were Kolsoum Mollahi Najandania, 43, Zarkhatoun Taheri, 50, and four-year-old Amir Mohammad. The fourth victim was 16-year-old Mohammad Mollahi. He was killed while riding a motorcycle near the communications tower. Iranian media also confirmed these names.
On February 28, a missile strike on an elementary school in Minab, Iran, killed more than 175 children and teachers. The latest incident occurred six months after that attack. These have been among the most brutal attacks by US forces in recent decades. Numerous civilians have been killed and injured in the incidents. However, the Pentagon has not yet made its investigation reports public.
On March 5, Reuters first reported that an initial internal investigation by the US military had found that US forces were responsible for the Minab attack.
Source: Reuters ( Adapted)
