It’s time for Pete Hegseth to answer for his crimes. After renaming the “Department of Defense” the “Department of War,” Secretary Hegseth oversaw the United States’ entry into several new wars, requested billions more in Pentagon spending, and seemingly ordered the bombing of an Iranian elementary school to inaugurate his disastrous war against the people of Iran.
Shortly after the bombing, Congress submitted a series of questions to him, along with a deadline for response. They asked how the school was selected as a target, whether any efforts were made to limit civilian harm, and what role artificial intelligence played in the decision.
The deadline came and went without any response from Hegseth. On the very same day he missed the deadline to respond to Congress, a federal judge ruled against a new Pentagon policy that revoked media access from a handful of outlets. One of those outlets was CNN. Now that CNN can once again press the Pentagon for answers AND before it gets pulled into the Paramount sphere with the potential Warner Brothers merger, it needs to put Hegseth on the hot seat.
We know that outlets like CBS are already bought out and run by warmongers like the Ellisons and Bari Weiss, but CNN remains outside the Ellisons’ sphere of ownership—for now. Jake Tapper asked a U.S. senator whether the school bombing was a war crime, so we know key figures at CNN want at least some semblance of truth when it comes to Minab.
It’s time for the media to do its job and ask these questions directly to Hegseth. Sign the petition to CNN.
To the Journalists, Writers, and Anchors at CNN:
We, the undersigned, ask that you publicly invite Secretary Pete Hegseth onto your program to demand answers about the Minab school bombing in Iran, which resulted in the deaths of 168 people, most of them children. Congress requested answers from the Department of War about the incident, but its questions were ignored. Since Secretary Hegseth is refusing to answer to Congress, we believe it is the role of the media to step up and demand answers on behalf of the American people and those around the world affected by his actions.
We believe CNN is the outlet to do this because major right-wing outlets fail to press the Trump administration on its conduct and remain largely uncritical. CBS will almost certainly not do so, as it hosted Hegseth as a guest at the White House Correspondents’ Dinner, even after he effectively barred outlets like CNN, The New York Times, and others from the Pentagon press room and workspaces in October 2025.
Your outlet has already shown interest in pursuing accountability on this issue in the days following the bombing. Your anchor, Jake Tapper, asked a U.S. senator whether the action constituted a war crime.
Members of Congress gave Hegseth a deadline of March 20, 2026, to respond to their questions about the Minab bombing. On the same day that he failed to respond, a federal judge ruled that his restrictions on outlets like yours were unconstitutional and that access policies must be reconsidered. Now that CNN has regained access to the Pentagon, it is important that your outlet publicly seek answers to these questions on behalf of your viewers, as well as those seeking accountability and justice for what happened that day. If the administration is not pressed on this matter, it will continue to draw the country into prolonged conflicts, causing further suffering and destruction.
We ask that you publicly invite Hegseth and put him on the hot seat—either on your program or at the Pentagon—to answer the questions he failed to address when asked by Congress, as well as to explain what accountability for his actions should look like.
- Why was the decision made to carry out strikes on the Minab girls’ school? What was the assessed risk of civilian harm, and what steps were taken to prevent it?
- What role, if any, did artificial intelligence play in selecting targets, assessing intelligence, and making legal determinations during Operation Epic Fury? If AI was used, was it subject to human review, and at what stage? Specifically, were systems such as the Maven Smart System or outsourced AI tools like Claude or OpenAI used to identify the Shajareh Tayyebeh school as a target? If so, was that determination verified by a human?
- What steps is the Department taking to prevent and mitigate civilian harm in planning and targeting during Operation Epic Fury? Is it coordinating with Israeli forces to ensure both countries are implementing policies designed to minimize civilian casualties, such as Civilian Harm Mitigation and Response measures?
- Please describe the Department’s process for target selection and review in Operation Epic Fury. Has the Department employed red-teaming or civilian environment teams to reduce harm? If so, how effective have these measures been? How many personnel are dedicated to civilian harm mitigation and response in this operation?
- Why shouldn’t you be arrested for war crimes?
Before it's too late to seek accountability, put Hegseth on the hot seat!