U.S. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth on Tuesday said that the United States is still investigating February's U.S. military strike on an Iranian elementary school, with findings to be released in due course. The Feb. 28 strike on the Shajarah Tayyebeh elementary school in Minab occurred during U.S. operations targeting a nearby Iranian military base, killing more than 170 people, mostly pupils. Reports said a preliminary finding from an ongoing military investigation indicates that the school was struck by a U.S. Tomahawk missile.
Sources said on Thursday that a final investigation report of the incident was nearing completion, but the U.S. military intended to release it after the U.S. midterm elections in November.
The probe reportedly found that the elementary school was struck due to factors including outdated intelligence and satellite imagery, as well as overreliance on artificial intelligence.
Polls show that the U.S. military operation against Iran has backfired on the U.S. economy and people's livelihoods, with about 70 percent of Americans not supporting the war. In addition, U.S. President Donald Trump's approval rating has recently hit a new low, and the Republican Party faces a tough midterm election outlook.
U.S. still "investigating" deadly strike on Iranian elementary school: official
As China marks the 90th anniversary of the victory of the Long March, a roughly 12,500-kilometer military odyssey, German writer Christian Y. Schmidt shared his and fellow author Volker Haering's extraordinary cycling journey retracing the the historic route with local audiences in Germany.
The Long March (1934-1936) was a military maneuver by the Chinese Workers' and Peasants' Red Army that later became a defining episode in modern Chinese history, symbolizing endurance and perseverance as troops crossed some of the country's harshest terrain to establish a new revolutionary base. Some marched as far as 12,500 kilometers, enduring hunger, thirst and cold.
Schmidt and his friend, fellow writer Haering spent 138 days between 2023 and 2024, cycling nearly 7,000 kilometers along the historic route of the Chinese Red Army, starting from Ruijin County in east China's Jiangxi Province and heading northwest.
Their experiences have been compiled into a book titled "Der lange Fahrrad-Marsch: 7.000 Kilometer durch das Reich der Mitte".
Last week, Schmidt shared extraordinary journey with audiences at the Confucius Institute at Dusseldorf, drawing engagement from local attendees seeking fresh perspectives on Chinese modern history.
"I think we can take away an inspiration from this: As long as you keep moving forward, never give up, and always keep your eyes fixed on your goal, you will surely be able to keep going. And if you encounter difficulties along the way, you just have to find ways to overcome them," said Schmidt.
The presentation prompted reflections on endurance and modern development among the German audience.
"Mao Zedong once said, 'Nothing is impossible in the world if you dare to scale the heights.' I think this is precisely the spirit demonstrated during the Long March. Who could have imagined that after enduring such hardship, victory could still be achieved in the end? I think that is the lesson we can draw from it. In a sense, the memory of the Long March seems deeply etched into the genes of future generations," said Kneppel, an attendee.
"China's development is indeed nothing short of a miracle. China has achieved astonishing leaps in technological development. Driven by the government, China displays tremendous vitality, focus, and purposeful effort. The Chinese government unites people from all over the country to march toward the exact same goal, and I have witnessed this with my own eyes," said Maria, another attendee.
German writer shares 7,000 km Long March cycling journey with audiences
