US Investigates Missile Strike at Iranian Wedding
\US Vice‑President JD Vance confirmed the United States is investigating Iranian claims that a missile struck a wedding ceremony in the city of Sirik, killing four people, including two children, and injuring dozens more.
\The Iranian Red Crescent Society said shrapnel from the missile hit the home hosting the ceremony. The Iranian foreign ministry spokesman Esmaeil Baqaei called the incident a “war crime.”
\Vance, speaking at a White House briefing, called the reports “extremely skeptical,” but reiterated that the U.S. would investigate the alleged strike. He also noted that U.S. missiles fired on the same day were aimed at “attempted attacks” by Iran on American forces and that “we never target civilians.”
\Iran has responded by launching fresh attacks on U.S. bases in Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates. Meanwhile, BBC Verify and BBC Persian Forensics confirmed that a telecommunications tower and nearby houses were damaged in the area, with the tower approximately 112 m from the wedding house.
\The incident is part of a conflict that has intensified for over half a year following a joint U.S.‑Israel strike on Iran on 28 February.
\According to the Iranian Red Crescent, 67 people were hurt in the incident, with the death toll rising to at least five when a woman aged 22 died in hospital shortly after the strike. The victims’ names include Zarkhatoon Taheri (50), Kolsum Mallahi Nazhdnia (43), Mohammad Mallahi (16) and Amirali Karimi (4).
\Image caption: The photo distributed by the Iranian Red Crescent Society shows the remains of the building that hosted the wedding ceremony.
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