Trump says he’s ‘willing to live with’ final US report on deadly missile strike near Iranian girls’ school
A view of the debris of a school, where many students and teachers lost their lives on the first day of the wave of attacks launched by the United States and Israel against Iran on March 5, 2026. (Photo by Stringer/Anadolu via Getty Images)
(NEW YORK) — President Donald Trump said on Monday he doesn’t “know enough” about the strike on an Iranian elementary school that Iran says killed at least 168 people, including dozens of children, but that he was “willing to live” with the findings of a U.S. investigation into the incident.
A newly surfaced video appears to show a U.S.-made missile, a Tomahawk, hitting a building in Iran adjacent to the girls’ school, experts told ABC News.
Trump suggested Monday it could have been a Tomahawk fired by Iran.
“I will say that the Tomahawk, which is one of the most powerful weapons around, is used by, you know, it’s sold and used by other countries, you know that,” Trump said. “And whether it’s Iran, who also has some Tomahawks, they wish they had more, but, whether it’s Iran or somebody else, the fact that a Tomahawk — a Tomahawk is very generic, it’s sold to other countries. But that’s being investigated right now.”
The U.S. makes and sells Tomahawks to its closest allies, including the U.K. and Australia. But it has never sold the technology to Iran or other adversaries. While other countries like Russia use cruise missiles, only the U.S. makes Tomahawks, as the missile experts say appears to be seen in the video of the school strike.
Israel has already said it wasn’t operating in the area of the school bombing.
The president faced questions Monday on the Feb. 28 incident during a news conference at Trump National Doral Miami, including his comment over the weekend that Iran was behind it.
“Based on what I’ve seen, that was done by Iran,” Trump told reporters on Air Force One on Saturday. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth, standing just behind the president on the plane, said the matter was under investigation and that “only side that targets civilians is Iran.”
But pressed on those remarks, Trump said on Monday, “I just don’t know enough about it.”
“I think it’s something that I was told is under investigation. But Tomahawks are –are used by others, as you know. Numerous other nations have Tomahawks. They buy them from us,” Trump said.
“But I will certainly, whatever the report shows, I’m willing to live with that report,” the president continued.
The U.S. military was striking targets in the country last Saturday in an area where an elementary school was hit and dozens of children were killed, two people familiar with the initial findings previously told ABC News.
An analysis of satellite imagery by ABC News suggests the Shajareh Tayyebeh school in Minab was near an Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps compound but had been separated from it more than decade ago.
Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, on NBC’s “Meet the Press” on Sunday, rejected Trump’s claim that Iran was behind the hit on the girls’ elementary school.
U.S. President Donald Trump speaks as he hosts the “The Shield of the Americas Summit ,“ a gathering with heads of state and government officials from 12 countries in the Americas at the Trump National Doral Golf Club on March 7, 2026 in Doral, Florida. (Photo by Roberto Schmidt/Getty Images)
(NEW YORK) — President Donald Trump is scheduled to speak at a ‘Shield of the Americas’ Summit on Saturday in Doral, Florida, an event that is billed by the White House as a ‘historic’ grouping of over 17 Latin American countries that are committed to cooperating with the U.S. in taking on the cartels and securing the American border following the capture of former Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro.
Trump will host heads of state from 12 nations across the Western Hemisphere, according to a White House official.
They are:
Argentinian President Javier Milei, Bolivian President Rodrigo Paz Pereira, Chilean President-elect Jose Antonio Kast Costa Rican President Rodrigo Chaves Robles Dominican Republic’s President Luis Rodolfo Abinader Corona Ecuadorian President Daniel Roy Gilchrist Noboa Azín El Salvadorian President Nayib Bukele Ortez Guyana’s President Mohamed Irfaan Ali Honduran President Tito Asfura Panamanian President José Raúl Mulino Quintero Paraguayan President Santiago Peña; and the President of Trinidad and Tobago, Kamla Persad-Bissessar
“On Saturday, the point of this newfound Latin America Summit is to promote freedom, security and prosperity in our region,” White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said during a press briefing this week.
“The President will be speaking with the leaders of this country who have really formed a historic coalition to work together to address criminal, narcoterrorist gangs and cartels encounter illegal and mass migration into not only the United States but the western hemisphere, which remains a key and top priority of this President,” she added.
Trump’s relationships with some Latin American leaders have turned tense at times and his policies have drawn criticism. Some leaders criticized the U.S. raid that captured Maduro as an attack on Venezuela’s sovereignty. Trump has also been critical of Mexico’s efforts to fight drug cartels and traded barbs with the president of Colombia, Gustavo Petro. However, following the Jan. 3 Venezuela raid, the two leaders appeared to have patched up their differences. Trump invited Petro to the White House and the two issued complimentary statements.
The summit has shifted in prominence after Trump announced he was removing Department of Homeland Security Secretary Kristi Noem from her post and shifting her to a new role as a special envoy for “The Shield of the Americas.”
Noem emailed DHS staff overnight on Thursday, informing them that her official final day at the department will be March 31 and writing, “In my new role, I will be able to build on the new partnerships and national security expertise I forged over my time as Secretary of Homeland Security.”
The summit also comes amid the U.S.-Israeli war with Iran, which has resulted in major movements in the U.S. energy markets.
To combat the spikes in crude oil prices, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said Friday on Fox that the U.S. was “drilling expeditiously here at home” and tapping into the new markets in Venezuela.
Rep. Tony Gonzales, R-Texas, makes his way to House votes in the U.S. Capitol on Wednesday, June 5, 2024. (Tom Williams/CQ-Roll Call, Inc via Getty Images)
(WASHINGTON) — Embattled Rep. Tony Gonzales announced Thursday evening that he will no longer seek reelection in Texas’ 23rd Congressional District, following calls from House Republican leadership to drop out of the race after the congressman admitted to having a relationship with a staffer.
“After deep reflection and with the support of my loving family, I have decided not to seek re-election while serving out the rest of this Congress with the same commitment I’ve always had to my district,” Gonzales wrote in a statement on X. “Through the rest of my term, I will continue fighting for my constituents, for whom I am eternally grateful.”
Gonzales’ statement touted various accomplishments from his three terms in Congress, with an emphasis on his “absolute dedication” to the U.S.
“My philosophy has never changed: do as much as you can, and always fight for the greater good,” he wrote.
Gonzales’ announcement came the same day House Republican leadership on Thursday asked Gonzales to drop out of the race.
“The Ethics Committee has announced an investigation into Congressman Tony Gonzales’s conduct, and we urge them to act expeditiously,” House Speaker Mike Johnson, Majority Leader Steve Scalise, Republican Whip Tom Emmer and Republican Conference Chairwoman Lisa McClain said in a joint statement.
“Congressman Gonzales has said he will fully cooperate with the investigation. We have encouraged him to address these very serious allegations directly with his constituents and his colleagues. In the meantime, Leadership has asked Congressman Gonzales to withdraw from his race for re-election,” they added.
Johnson told reporters later that the GOP’s call for Gonzales to drop his reelection bid — rather than resign from Congress — amounts to “a death penalty” for Gonzales.
“Leadership put out a statement. It speaks for itself. We’ve encouraged him to drop out of the race for reelection,” Johnson said. “Politically, that’s a death penalty.”
Gonzales on Tuesday night advanced to a runoff primary election on May 26 against conservative activist Brandon Herrera.
The next day, Gonzales spoke with talk show host Joe “Pags” Pagliarulo who asked if he had a relationship with his district director, Regina Santos-Aviles, who later died by suicide.
“Was there a relationship with this young lady, um, who was working in your office?” Pagliarulo asked Gonzales at the outset of the interview on Wednesday.
“I made a mistake, and I had a lapse in judgment, and there was a lack of faith, and I take full responsibility for those actions,” Gonzales answered. “Since then, I’ve reconciled with my wife Angel. I’ve asked God to forgive me, which he has. And my faith is as strong as ever. When you make mistakes like this, you know, it’s never easy. It humbles you.”
Gonzales said he looks forward to the House Ethics Committee’s investigation into the allegations.
The panel said it has established an investigative subcommittee to examine allegations that Gonzales “may have: (1) engaged in sexual misconduct towards an individual employed in his congressional office; and/or (2) discriminated unfairly by dispensing special favors or privileges.”
“I appreciate the opportunity to be able to provide all the facts and all the details that lead to exactly what occurred in the entire situation,” said Gonzales, who has declined to withdraw from his reelection bid.
The congressman had previously denied the relationship with Santos-Aviles.
Despite now admitting his relationship with her, Gonzales distanced himself from her death, claiming that he had not spoken with her since June of 2024, before she ultimately died the following year.
“You know, the facts are, I hadn’t spoken with Ms. Santos since June of 2024. She passed September of 2025. That was over a year ago. So, this is what I think is important as well — is this whole notion that I had anything to do with her death. I had absolutely nothing to do with her tragic passing. And in fact, I was shocked just as much as everyone else,” Gonzales said.
Congressional payroll records show that Santos-Aviles was still employed in Gonzales’ office on the date of her death, Sept. 14, 2025.
Gonzales insisted that Santos-Aviles was treated well in his office and showed no signs of distress leading up to her death, claiming that she was “thriving at work.”
“I’ve always highlighted the great work that she had done for our office and the community,” Gonzales said, before pinning blame on the media coverage of the matter.
ABC News previously obtained explicit text messages from May of 2024 appearing to show Gonzales repeatedly request photos and ask Santos-Aviles about her sexual preferences.
Asked by Pagliarulo about the text messages, Gonzales insisted that there is “a lot more to the story that isn’t out there,” without commenting further on the content of any other communications with Santos-Aviles.
Asked if he understands the issues surrounding a boss having a relationship with his subordinate, Gonzales acknowledged that it’s an “important” and “serious issue that we have to talk about,” before again emphasizing the need for “all the facts.”
ABC News has obtained the Uvalde police report on Santos-Aviles death through a records request, but the report has not been posted publicly.
During Wednesday’s interview, Gonzales brushed off concerns from fellow House Republicans that have called for his resignation, saying, “you’re always going to have political enemies.”
“I don’t speak with those two on a regular basis, that we operate in different … groups, if you will,” Gonzales said, referring to Republican Reps. Nancy Mace and Rep. Anna Paulina Luna, who have voiced concerns over the allegations against him. “But what I will say is you can never let those people slow you down in any form or fashion.”
Gonzales, who maintains President Donald Trump’s endorsement despite the allegations and ethics inquiry, said he has not spoken directly with Trump about the matter.
“I appreciate the president’s support,” Gonzales said.
“I was just actually in Corpus [Christi] when he came down to Texas. That was an incredible event. Everybody was energized,” Gonzales added, referring to the president’s trip last week where Trump gave the congressman a shoutout and congratulated him before the crowd.
In this U.S. Navy released handout, Arleigh Burke-class guided-missile destroyer USS Frank E. Petersen Jr. (DDG 121) fires a Tomahawk Land Attack Missile during operations in support of Operation Epic Fury, on February 28, 2026 at Sea. (Photo by U.S. Navy via Getty Images)
(NEW YORK) — While President Donald Trump says Operation Epic Fury could last several weeks, a question some are raising is how long U.S. and allies’ missile defense stockpiles can last in an extended conflict with Iran.
Trump has insisted that the U.S. is well equipped to fight, with a “virtually unlimited supply,” and other Gulf states have pushed back on claims that they are running missiles.
How much of the U.S. interceptor stockpile is being used up to defend against Iran’s continued heavy missile and drone attacks is classified, but it’s expected to be among questions lawmakers have for top Trump administration officials this week when they brief lawmakers on Capitol Hill.
Some experts are also raising concerns about America’s cache of the expensive air defense missiles as the Iranian military continues to target U.S. assets and other allies in retaliation.
Kelly Grieco, a senior fellow at the Stimson Center think tank and former assistant professor at the Air Command and Staff College, told ABC News that the conflict is becoming a “war of attrition.”
Watch special coverage on Nightline, “War with Iran,” each night on ABC and streaming on Disney+ and Hulu.
The U.S. and Israeli militaries are now in a race to destroy Iran’s missile capabilities, including launchers and production facilities, before the U.S. and Israel’s own stockpile of air defense interceptor missiles in the region is depleted, according to Grieco.
“The question is becoming who runs out of missiles first. Does the defender run out of interceptors,” she asked, referring to the armies of the U.S., Israel and the Gulf states. “Or does Iran run out of missiles, or their ability to launch missiles?”
“If the Iranians are able to launch with the kinds of numbers they have been launching over the past 48 hours over the next four to five weeks, that does not seem sustainable from an interceptor perspective,” she added.
“But if those numbers drop off because the U.S. and Israel destroy the launchers themselves, or their storage facilities, and the numbers drop dramatically, then we could potentially sustain this campaign,” Greico said.
Retired Lt. Gen. Dan Karbler, former commander of the U.S. Space and Missile Defense Command, told ABC News Live Tuesday that extensive drone use by the Iranian military has prompted the use of smaller short-range missiles as interceptors.
“We don’t want to shoot Patriot missiles at the drones,” he said. “So, some of our short-range air defense, more capability of that type of nature needs to flow into countries so we’re using our short-range missiles to take out these drones not our very limited patriot missiles.”
President Trump attempted to assuage concerns about the stockpile Tuesday — but also acknowledged the number of some of the highest-grade munitions is “not where we want it to be.”
“The United States Munitions Stockpiles have, at the medium and upper medium grade, never been higher or better — As was stated to me today, we have a virtually unlimited supply of these weapons,” Trump wrote on social media early Tuesday morning.
And even as he says the U.S. will “easily prevail” in this war and that the U.S. is prepared for the operation to go on for “whatever it takes,” Trump wrote that “Wars can be fought “forever,” and very successfully, using just these supplies.”
The U.S. was already concerned about its stockpile before this war as the Russian-Ukraine conflict, the Israeli-Gaza conflict and last summer’s conflict with Iran have dramatically increased demand for Patriot and THAAD missiles, according to Greico.
Terminal High Altitude Area Defense missiles that are used to defend against Iran’s most powerful ballistic missiles are in particularly short supply. Grieco estimated that if the U.S. uses its THAAD missiles at same rate as the 12-day conflict with Iran last year, it likely only has enough for about two weeks now at most.
Grieco said it will take a long time, and be costly, for the U.S. and other countries to replenish their antimissile stockpiles, which are more time consuming and expensive to produce than the Iranian weapons they defend against.
Iran has not launched missiles at the same scale so far compared to the attacks during conflict with Israel last year.
Israeli officials and independent experts said they believe that may reflect a strategy by Iran to run down air defense supplies with relatively smaller but steady attacks over a longer period.
