Parents in Iran are mourning more than 100 children killed when a U.S. missile struck their school. Now, the tragedy is putting a spotlight on the military’s use of artificial intelligence.
The strike happened on the first day of the U.S.-Iran war when a Tomahawk missile hit Shajareh Tayyebeh elementary school. At least 168 people were killed, including more than 100 children under 12, according to UN and Iranian officials. The school sat less than 100 yards from an Iranian military site, which may have influenced how it was flagged.
However, investigators say the school had been active for years, with an online presence and clear civilian use. So that raised a major question about whether the intelligence used to identify the target was outdated.
Now lawmakers are demanding answers. More than 120 House Democrats asked, “Was artificial intelligence, including the use of the Maven Smart System, used to identify the Shajareh Tayyebeh school as a target?” They also asked, “If so, did a human verify the accuracy of this target?”
Early reports suggest the issue may not be the technology itself but the data behind it. Sources previously told CNN that targeting coordinates came from outdated intelligence that did not reflect the school’s presence.
Ukrainian drone expert Ihor Matviyuk said, “It was almost definitely a strike on the [given] coordinates.” He added, “The main problem was not the AI — it was how close the military object was to the school.”
Pentagon data shows AI systems can misidentify targets, especially in poor conditions. However, officials continue to stress that humans are responsible for final decisions. Lt. Gen. Karen Gibson said, “A commander somewhere will ultimately be held responsible — not a machine or a software engineer.”
