Civilian Casualties

Civilian Casualties

Incident Code

USYEM051-B

Incident date

March 18, 2012

Location

مسيمر, Al Musaimeer, near Zinjibar, Abyan, Yemen

Geolocation

13.1194440, 45.3502780 Note: The accuracy of this location is to Village level. Continue to map

Airwars assessment

Alleged Yemeni or US strikes on Al Qaeda positions in north-eastern Zinjibar, Abyan province, allegedly killed 14 to 18 belligerents and injured dozens of others on 18 March 2012, sources said. There are currently no reports of civilian harm, though one source, Xinhua, stated that an anonymous Yemen official stated that “it was not clear whether there were any civilian casualties.” Additionally, an unnamed witness told Xinhua that the shelling demolished more than four houses in the center of Jaar city, forcing many people to flee their homes.

According to Dawn News, a local official reported that “many bases of Al Qaeda were destroyed,” and 16 jihadists were killed while Xinhua provided a higher casualty toll, stating that “at least 18 terrorists” were killed and dozens were injured, without specifying exactly how many were injured.

Reiterating this news, the Yemen Times also reported that heavy shelling had targeted fields and badly damaged crops: “We are not sure whether Yemeni aircraft or US unmanned drones are responsible for the airstrikes,” one farmer told the Yemen Times.

Reuters called the strike a “naval bombardment”, and the Long War Journal surmised that “If missiles were indeed fired from the sea (and we have no confirmation of this, only the word of an anonymous Yemeni official), then they were most likely fired by US Navy warships. The Yemeni Navy does not possess the capacity to conduct such strikes; its missile boats and corvettes fire only anti-ship missiles.”

Xinhua reported a local Yemen official as confirming it was a joint US Naval – Yemen Air Force offensive, but placed the naval bombardment at nearby Jaar.

The local time of the incident is unknown.

Geolocation notes

Reports of the incident mention the area or village of Al Musaimeer (مسيمر) around the town Zinjibar (زنجبار‎). The coordinates for this village are: 13.1194440, 45.3502780. Due to limited information and satellite imagery available to Airwars, we were unable to verify the location further.

Summary

  • Strike status
    Contested strike
  • Strike type
    Airstrike, Drone Strike, Naval bombardment
  • Civilian infrastructure
    Agriculture
  • Civilian harm reported
    No
  • Civilians reported killed
    0
  • Cause of injury / death
    Heavy weapons and explosive munitions
  • Suspected belligerents
    US Forces, Yemeni Air Force
  • Suspected target
    Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP)
  • Belligerents reported killed
    14–18
  • Belligerents reported injured
    12–24

Sources (7) [ collapse]

US Forces Assessment:

  • Suspected belligerent
    US Forces
  • US Forces position on incident
    Not yet assessed

Yemeni Air Force Assessment:

  • Suspected belligerent
    Yemeni Air Force
  • Yemeni Air Force position on incident
    Not yet assessed

Summary

  • Strike status
    Contested strike
  • Strike type
    Airstrike, Drone Strike, Naval bombardment
  • Civilian infrastructure
    Agriculture
  • Civilian harm reported
    No
  • Civilians reported killed
    0
  • Cause of injury / death
    Heavy weapons and explosive munitions
  • Suspected belligerents
    US Forces, Yemeni Air Force
  • Suspected target
    Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP)
  • Belligerents reported killed
    14–18
  • Belligerents reported injured
    12–24

Sources (7) [ collapse]