Cortez Masto Joins 45 Senate Colleagues in Pressing Department of Defense for Answers on the School Bombing and Civilian Casualties in Iran

Washington, D.C. - Today, U.S. Senator Catherine Cortez Masto (D-Nev.) joined a letter led by Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.) Tim Kaine (D-Va.), Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.), Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii) and signed by 41 colleagues in pressing the Department of Defense (DOD) to provide answers to the American people on the airstrikes on a school in Minab, Iran and civilian casualties in the Trump Administration's war on Iran, as well as accountability for those responsible.

"We write with grave concern regarding the airstrikes on a girls' elementary school that reportedly killed at least 168 people - mostly children - in Minab, Iran during the opening salvo of U.S. and Israeli operations on Iran on February 28. To be clear, the war against Iran is a war of choice without Congressional authorization. Nonetheless, as these military actions continue, the United States and Israel must abide by U.S. and international law, including the law of armed conflict. There must be a swift investigation into the strikes on this school and any other potential U.S. 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," the Senators begin.

"There have also been reports of airstrikes that have hit multiple hospitals, cultural heritage sites, and other critical civilian infrastructure…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 U.S. national security interests. These concerns are compounded by the reported use of artificial intelligence tools to select and prioritize targets in Iran," the Senators stress.

The Senators go on to press for official answers to whether U.S. forces conducted or assisted with the strike that struck the girls' school in Minab and for details about the intended target, risk analysis, and measures taken to reduce risk of civilian casualties. The letter also asks for the DOD to outline if and how artificial intelligence tools are being used in military operations in Iran.

Senators Cortez Masto, Van Hollen, Kaine, Warren, and Schatz were joined in sending this letter by Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) and Senators Jack Reed (D-R.I.), Jeanne Shaheen (D-N.H.), Mazie Hirono (D-Hawaii), Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.), Kristen Gillibrand (D-N.Y.), Michael Bennet (D-Colo.), Patty Murray (D-Wash.), Jeff Merkley (D-Ore.), Martin Heinrich (D-N.M.), Tammy Baldwin (D-Wis.), Ed Markey (D-Mass.), Peter Welch (D-Vt.), Tammy Duckworth (D-Ill.), Angela Alsobrooks (D-Md.), Tina Smith (D-Minn.), Andy Kim (D-N.J.), Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), Ruben Gallego (D-Ariz.), Raphael Warnock (D-Ga.), Dick Durbin (D-Ill.), Alex Padilla (D-Calif.), Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.), Ben Ray Luján (D-N.M.), Lisa Blunt Rochester (D-Del.), Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.), John Hickenlooper (D-Colo.), Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), Gary Peters (D-Mich.), Mark Kelly (D-Ariz.), Elissa Slotkin (D-Mich.), Chris Coons (D-Del.), Jacky Rosen (D-Nev.), Cory Booker (D-N.J.), Jon Ossoff (D-Ga.), Adam Schiff (D-Calif.), Mark Warner (D-Va.), Maria Cantwell (D-Wash.), Maggie Hassan (D-N.H.), Chris Murphy (D-Conn.), and Angus King (I-Maine).

The full letter can be found here.

Following reports that Russia is providing Iran with intelligence to target American military forces, yesterday Senator Cortez Masto passed her bipartisan bill HONOR Act to prevent businesses from claiming a foreign tax credit or deduction against taxes paid to fund the Russian government's war machine. She has also supported numerous war powers resolutions to limit the Trump Administration's ability to take further military action against Iran without a debate and vote in Congress. She is also a cosponsor of several bills to protect American interests from Iranian aggression and supports bipartisan legislation to expand internet access for Iranian civilians and combat Iran's human rights abuses.

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