US airstrikes kill at least 73 civilians in Syria
US airstrikes on a Syrian village have killed at least 73 civilians, a majority of them women and children, activists say, in the deadliest coalition attack on non-combatants since the start of the bombing campaign against the Islamic State.
The bombing was part of a two-month push to seize the town of Manbij, a strategic centre, key to any future advance on Islamic State’s de facto capital, Raqqa. Activists had warned of high civilian casualty rates from airstrikes in Manbij even before the latest airstrike.
In the early hours of Tuesday morning, activists described coalition aircraft hitting a cluster of houses in the village of Tokkhar, where nearly 200 people had gathered to seek shelter as the frontline shifted towards their homes. Most of those inside were killed or injured.
“The death toll is 117. We could document [the identity of] 73 civilians including 35 children and 20 women. The rest of the dead bodies are charred, or have been reduced to shreds,” said Adnan al-Housen, an activist from Manbij.
He said around 50 injured survivors were rushed for treatment to the border town of Jarablus, where they provided details about the attack.
Ahmad Mohammad from the Syrian Institute for Justice, a Turkey-based group which monitors human rights violations, has also documented 73 victims, from at least nine families. UK-based monitoring group AirWars has recorded the names of a similar number of dead from several different sources.
“This is likely the worst reported civilian toll of any coalition attack since the bombing campaign against Isis began nearly two years ago,” said AirWars director Chris Wood. The group had already warned of a rising civilian toll around Manbij.
“Since the siege began it’s our view that at least 190 civilians have been killed by coalition airstrikes, mostly US. We are concerned that the US-led alliance appears to have relaxed some of their rules concerning civilian casualties,” said Woods. A coalition spokesman denied any change to its rules of engagement.
The attack came the day before defence ministers from the anti-Isis coalition gathered outside Washington to discuss progress in the war.
Anti-Isis activist group Raqqa is Being Slaughtered Silently warned on Twitter that airstrikes which kill civilians undermine the fight against Isis, and gave an even higher toll for the Tuesday attack.
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Some people are now saying the civilian death toll is now at least 85, with possibilities of the number rising to 100+. None of the major media outlets are covering this news on television. I feel so sad and heart-broken about this.
SOURCE
The bombing was part of a two-month push to seize the town of Manbij, a strategic centre, key to any future advance on Islamic State’s de facto capital, Raqqa. Activists had warned of high civilian casualty rates from airstrikes in Manbij even before the latest airstrike.
In the early hours of Tuesday morning, activists described coalition aircraft hitting a cluster of houses in the village of Tokkhar, where nearly 200 people had gathered to seek shelter as the frontline shifted towards their homes. Most of those inside were killed or injured.
“The death toll is 117. We could document [the identity of] 73 civilians including 35 children and 20 women. The rest of the dead bodies are charred, or have been reduced to shreds,” said Adnan al-Housen, an activist from Manbij.
He said around 50 injured survivors were rushed for treatment to the border town of Jarablus, where they provided details about the attack.
Ahmad Mohammad from the Syrian Institute for Justice, a Turkey-based group which monitors human rights violations, has also documented 73 victims, from at least nine families. UK-based monitoring group AirWars has recorded the names of a similar number of dead from several different sources.
“This is likely the worst reported civilian toll of any coalition attack since the bombing campaign against Isis began nearly two years ago,” said AirWars director Chris Wood. The group had already warned of a rising civilian toll around Manbij.
“Since the siege began it’s our view that at least 190 civilians have been killed by coalition airstrikes, mostly US. We are concerned that the US-led alliance appears to have relaxed some of their rules concerning civilian casualties,” said Woods. A coalition spokesman denied any change to its rules of engagement.
The attack came the day before defence ministers from the anti-Isis coalition gathered outside Washington to discuss progress in the war.
Anti-Isis activist group Raqqa is Being Slaughtered Silently warned on Twitter that airstrikes which kill civilians undermine the fight against Isis, and gave an even higher toll for the Tuesday attack.
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Some people are now saying the civilian death toll is now at least 85, with possibilities of the number rising to 100+. None of the major media outlets are covering this news on television. I feel so sad and heart-broken about this.
SOURCE