Experts dispute US account of deadly Lamerd sports hall strike in Iran

Multiple weapons experts have disputed a US claim that Iran may have been responsible for a deadly strike on the town of Lamerd on the first day of the war.

Six experts - who examined footage of the strike and all commented independently - contested the US suggestion that it was an Iranian missile, citing the missile's visual features, the way it exploded, its trajectory and the number of strikes in the area as the basis for their analysis.

Iranian officials have said 21 people, including four children, were killed.

BBC Verify originally reported on the strikes on 28 March, citing experts who said it was likely a US Precision Strike Missile (PrSM) was used. The US Central Command (Centcom) - which oversees US military operations in the Middle East - declined to comment for that report.

Centcom then released a statement on 31 March, external denying it was a US missile, instead saying that footage of the attack was consistent with an Iranian Hoveyzeh cruise missile.

"US forces do not target civilians, unlike the Iranian regime which has attacked civilian locations in neighboring countries more than 300 times," the statement added.

When BBC Verify went back to Centcom with the experts' analysis, it said it had "nothing to add" to its original statement.

CCTV footage shows moment of strike on residential buildings in Lamerd

Lamerd, a town in southern Iran, came under attack on 28 February. CCTV footage published by Iranian state media - which was authenticated and geolocated by BBC Verify - showed a munition moments before it exploded above a residential area. Experts identified it as likely being a US missile, based on its appearance, the size of the blast and the distance from potential US launch sites in the Middle East.

In BBC Verify's initial report, three analysts at the defence intelligence company Janes and an expert at McKenzie Intelligence all said the missile seen in the footage was likely a PrSM - a brand new missile manufactured by Lockheed Martin for the US military.

A New York Times report, external also found that a PrSM likely hit Lamerd.

On Tuesday US Navy Capt Tim Hawkins said in the statement: "After looking into the reports, U.S. Central Command has confirmed the accusations are false."

"U.S. forces did not launch any strikes at any time into the city of Lamerd or anywhere within 30 miles during the opening day of Operation Epic Fury," adding that it "does not show a Precision Strike Missile (PrSM)".

"The munition depicted in the video appears to be twice as long, consistent with the dimensions and silhouette of an Iranian Hoveyzeh cruise missile," Capt Hawkins said.

Multiple weapons experts have disputed Centcom's claims, noting the Hoveyzeh has a number of distinctive features which they say are not visible in the Lamerd strike footage.

On the same day nearly 400km east, strikes hit an Iranian school and a nearby military base in Minab, killing 168 people according to Iranian officials. Expert video analysis suggests a US Tomahawk missile struck the military compound.

US Defence Secretary Pete Hegseth said the incident was under investigation, adding that US forces "never target civilian targets".

PrSM vs Hoveyzeh missile

Amael Kotlarski, a weapons analyst at Janes - a defence intelligence company - said that the Hoveyzeh missile has a belly-mounted turbojet and a pair of mid-body wings.

"Crucially, no matter the angle from which the missile is viewed from, the wings and the turbo jet would be visible. None of that is clearly distinguishable from the footage," he said.

Another munitions expert from McKenzie Intelligence also said the missile seen in the video had no wings or external engine. They said that distinctive "canard fins", consistent with a PrSM, are visible in the footage.

"I remain convinced that the weapon seen is a PrSM and not a Iranian Hoveyzeh Cruise Missile - the two are vastly different in appearance," they added.

Trevor Ball, a weapons expert with the investigative outlet Bellingcat said in a post on X, external that the length of the missile was "much more consistent with the PrSM" than a Hoveyzeh missile.

"The Hoveyzeh silhouette is also much different, with wings and a visible engine depending on angle," he added.