Disagreement Among Experts on Iran's Missile Strike Responsibility in Lamerd

Fri Apr 03 2026 16:26:04 GMT+0000 (Coordinated Universal Time)

Experts have raised doubts over a US claim attributing a fatal missile strike in Lamerd, Iran, to Iranian forces. The analysis suggests conflicting evidence concerning the missile used during the strike.

A US assertion linking a deadly missile strike on Lamerd, Iran, to Iranian forces is being challenged by multiple arms experts. The experts argue that evidence from the strike suggests it may not align with Iranian missile characteristics. Iranian officials report casualties from the strike, including children, while investigations continue regarding the missile's origins.

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 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.

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.

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. However, 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.

The analysis continues as the originating missile remains a point of contention with no resolution in sight.