1. United States
2. Pa.
3. Letter

A preliminary U.S. military investigation has determined that an American Tomahawk missile strike destroyed an elementary school in Minab, Iran, killing at least 175 people, most of them children. According to officials briefed on the inquiry, the strike resulted from outdated targeting data supplied by the Defense Intelligence Agency and used by U.S. Central Command without adequate verification. This tragedy represents one of the most devastating military errors in recent history. Satellite imagery and public reporting show the building had been clearly converted into a school years earlier, with playgrounds, entrances for students, and other visible indicators of civilian use. Yet the site remained labeled as a military target in the targeting database that guided the strike. Before the investigation had even reached preliminary conclusions, senior officials attempted to shift blame away from the United States. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth publicly stated that “the only side that targets civilians is Iran.” President Trump similarly claimed that Iran carried out the strike, asserting that Iran’s munitions are inaccurate and saying, “It was done by Iran.” These statements were not responsible leadership during an ongoing investigation. They were attempts by the very officials who ordered and carried out the war to portray Iran as the likely perpetrator of an atrocity that the United States now appears to have committed. Targeting and destroying a school filled with children is a heinous act. Senior officials clearly understood that reality and attempted to preemptively shift blame rather than confront the possibility of U.S. responsibility. Now that evidence indicates the strike was carried out by the United States using a missile we launched, the country must face the gravity of what occurred. The destruction of a school and the killing of more than one hundred children cannot simply be dismissed as a routine wartime mistake. Such a failure reflects either profound moral negligence or severe institutional incompetence within the chain of command. Equally troubling is the fact that this tragedy occurred during a war that Congress did not authorize. The Constitution gives Congress the sole authority to declare war. By launching hostilities against Iran without authorization, the President bypassed that constitutional safeguard and placed American forces into a conflict with catastrophic consequences. Congress must respond with real consequences. I urge you to take the following actions: 1. Initiate impeachment proceedings against President Trump for illegally initiating war with Iran and for the unlawful killing of civilians resulting from that conflict. 2. Demand the removal or resignation of Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and any senior officials responsible for the targeting failures that led to the destruction of the school. 3. Subpoena the full targeting records, intelligence assessments, and command decisions that led to the strike in order to determine where the chain of responsibility lies. 4. Pass legislation reaffirming that no president may initiate war without explicit congressional authorization and strengthening safeguards to prevent civilian targets from being misidentified. When the United States kills hundreds of civilians, including children, the response cannot be denial or deflection. Our government must acknowledge the truth, hold those responsible to account, and reaffirm that the rule of law applies even in war.