Conflict

U.S.-led Coalition in Iraq & Syria

Incident Code

CI220

Location

الموصل‎, Mosul, Nineveh, Iraq

Geolocation

36.34585235, 43.09857692
Accuracy: City

Airwars Assessment

Last Updated: December 15, 2024

(Previous Incident Code: I186a)

According to the Iraq Oil Report, a fresh attack by Coalition aircraft on the Al Waldy clothing plant in the Al Shifa neighbourhood of eastern Mosul killed 15 civilian workers.

According to the site – which uses a network of informants in the city, “On April 7 [ ] air strikes destroyed a small garment factory in the Shifa neighbourhood of Mosul city. (It was the second strike on a garment shop in the area in two days, as another one was hit on the morning of April 6.) Residents familiar with the factory say IS obtained clothing and banners from there, but that the building had never hosted IS militants or been run by them and did not have any military function.

The majority of the occupants were civilian women who worked in the factory, and families from Baiji who had resettled in the building and grounds. Multiple witnesses said 15 people had been killed, with almost all being women and children. In addition, around 20 more civilians were injured to varying degrees, again mostly women and children. The building was destroyed.

No IS militants were killed or wounded, the witnesses said, and none were near the site when it was struck.”

In the first of their March 2020 civilian casualty reports, the US-led Coalition assessed reports that they were responsible for civilian harm in this strike as “non-credible”, stating that no Coalition actions were conducted in the geographical area at that time.

Key Information

Country
Military Actor
Civilian Harm Reported
Yes
Civilian Harm Status
Weak
Civilians reported killed
15
8–10 Women
Civilians reported injured
20

Geolocation Notes

Reports of the incident mention the city of Mosul (الموصل‎), for which the generic coordinates are: 36.34585235, 43.09857692. Due to limited satellite imagery and information available to Airwars, we were unable to verify the location further.

Military Statements

U.S.-led Coalition Assessment
Suspected belligerent
U.S.-led Coalition
U.S.-led Coalition position on incident
Non credible / Unsubstantiated
Reason for non-credible assessment
No Coalition strikes were conducted in the geographical area
Civilian deaths conceded
None
Civilian injuries conceded
None
MGRS coordinate
38SLF311247
U.S.-led Coalition Strike Report
For April 6th-7th the Coalition reported: “Near Mosul, five strikes struck two separate ISIL tactical units and destroyed an ISIL tunnel system, an ISIL assembly area, an ISIL fighting position, and an ISIL vehicle.”
U.S.-led Coalition Civilian Casualty Statement
2020-03-25
Original Source
April 7, 2016, in Mosul, Iraq, via Airwars report. After a review of all available records it was assessed that no Coalition actions were conducted in the geographical area that corresponds to the report of civilian casualties. 2936/CI220 38SLF311247