The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), the nation’s largest Muslim civil rights and advocacy organization, today urged lawmakers to launch a full, independent investigation and hold the Trump administration and the Pentagon accountable after a strike utilizing a 2,000-lb bomb destroyed a family home in Iran, killing three civilians, including a two-year old child.
According to a New York Times investigation, an American bomber dropped a Mark-84 bomb fitted with a JDAM guidance kit on a densely populated residential neighborhood on Qeshm Island. The strike killed Zahra Jafari, her husband Qeysar, and their two-year-old son Sina, while displacing approximately 20 neighboring families and leaving a 30-foot crater. After examining satellite imagery and available footage, investigators found no indication of military infrastructure or objectives near the targeted home that would explain the strike.
In its investigation, the New York Times reported:
“The evidence raises questions about what the United States was targeting and why such a large munition was used.
“The strike hit a densely populated neighborhood on the island, which sits in the Strait of Hormuz in southern Iran, and appears to have been part of a flurry of attacks the United States said it had launched to retaliate against earlier strikes by Iran on a base used by American forces in Jordan.
“The Times found no indication of a military site near the family’s home or any reports of military casualties from the strike, which the Iranian authorities typically announce.”
SEE: Evidence Indicates U.S. Dropped Bomb on Residential Area in Iran, Killing 3 Civilians – The New York Times
In a statement, CAIR said:
“We strongly condemn this horrific and unjustified attack on a civilian neighborhood that resulted in the tragic deaths of an innocent mother, father, and their two-year-old child. Dropping a 2,000-pound bomb on a densely populated residential area with no apparent military objective is a flagrant crime against humanity. We call on all members of Congress to immediately demand justice, transparency, and a full, independent investigation into this deadly strike. The Pentagon and the Trump administration must be held accountable for this devastating and reckless loss of civilian life.”
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CONTACT: CAIR National Deputy Director Edward Ahmed Mitchell, 404-285-9530, [email protected]; CAIR Government Affairs Director Robert McCaw, 202-742-6448, [email protected]; CAIR National Communications Director Ibrahim Hooper, 202-744-7726, [email protected]; CAIR National Communications Manager Ismail Allison, 202-770-6280, [email protected]