Civilian Casualties

Civilian Casualties

Incident Code

LC018b

Incident date

June 20, 2018

Location

النوفلية, Nofaliya, Sirte, Libya

Geolocation

30.77363, 17.83683 Note: The accuracy of this location is to Exact location (via Airwars) level. Continue to map

Airwars assessment

One civilian was reported killed in an alleged GNC/Libya Dawn airstrike on Nofaliya.

Taher Abdullah Al Tourghi wrote on Facebook: “A military aircraft strikes the electricity building in the Nofaliya area, causing the death of Taher Abdullah Al-Tawergi.”

Sirte Gecol News reported that “On Saturday afternoon, the third day of Ramadan, a plane attacked the area of Nofaliya Valley and the bombing caused the death of Taher Abdullah Bashir Tawergi, a staff member of the General Electricity Company at his workplace.”

Other sources published similar reports.

Alrasifat News claimed that Libya Dawn conducted the strike.

The local time of the incident is unknown.

Summary

  • Civilian harm reported
    Yes
  • Civilians reported killed
    1
  • (1 man)
  • Suspected attacker
    General National Congress (GNC)

Sources (7) [ collapse]

Media
from sources (10) [ collapse]

  • Translation: #Sirte Unknown Air Force Bombing the Electricity Building in Al-Nofliya area east of the city, which led to the death of Taher Abdullah Al-Tawergi (Source: Werfelli Walid Facebook page)
  • Translation: On the afternoon of Saturday, the third of Ramadan, a flight attacked the area of Neufleh Valley, the bombing led the killing of Mr. Taher Abdullah Bashir Tawergi, a member of the General Electricity Company at his workplace and the reason for the demolition of the maintenance building of the rapid electricity company and other neighbouring buildings (Source: Electricity company)
  • Another picture of the damage (Source: Electricity company)
  • Another picture of the damage (Source: Electricity company)
  • Another picture of the damage (Source: Electricity company)
  • Another picture of the damage (Source: Electricity company)
  • Another picture of the damage (Source: Electricity company)
  • Another picture of the damage (Source: Electricity company)
  • Another picture of the damage (Source: Electricity company)
  • Remant of allegedly used bomb (Source: Electricity company)

Geolocation notes (3) [ collapse]

Reports of the incident mention the town of Nofaliya (النوفلية). By analysing photos from sources we eventually narrowed it down an exact location for which the coordinates are: 30.773635, 17.836839

  • Reports of the incident mention the town of Nofaliya (النوفلية). Analysing photos from sources we eventually narrowed it down an exact location.

    Imagery:
    Google Earth

  • Panoramic stitch of footage from the incident.

    Imagery:
    ALRSEEFA.NET

  • Panoramic stitch of footage from the incident.

    Imagery:
    Google Earth

General National Congress (GNC) Assessment:

  • Suspected belligerent
    General National Congress (GNC)
  • General National Congress (GNC) position on incident
    Not yet assessed

Summary

  • Civilian harm reported
    Yes
  • Civilians reported killed
    1
  • (1 man)
  • Suspected attacker
    General National Congress (GNC)

Sources (7) [ collapse]

Incident Code

LC017b

Incident date

May 23, 2015

Location

زعفران, Zaafran, Sirte, Libya

Geolocation

31.206944, 16.549167 Note: The accuracy of this location is to Neighbourhood/area level. Continue to map

Airwars assessment

A father and one or two of his daughters were reported killed as a result of an alleged GNC/Libya Dawn airstrike on Sirte.

Most sources claim that a father with his two daughters were killed in an airstrike on their family home. However, some sources reported that only one of his daughters died and they were in fact in their car.

Tajwara News reported: “The terrorist aeroplane which belongs to Libya Dawn targeted a house in Zaafran residential neighbourhood, killing a father and his daughters.”

Afrigate News posted on Twitter that the “Sirte hospital receives three killed by mistake by Libya Dawn plane in the Zaafran area.”

Rawadfree1 wrote: “Shelling by an aircraft in the Zaafran area of Sirte, shrapnel hitting a car causing its burning, the death of a father and his daughter and another girl wounded.”

Ean Libya published a similar take: “Military aircraft from Libya Dawn hit a car in the Zaafran area, which led to the death of father and daughter.”

The local time of the incident is unknown.

Summary

  • Civilian harm reported
    Yes
  • Civilians reported killed
    2 – 3
  • (1–2 children1 man)
  • Civilians reported injured
    0–1
  • Airwars civilian harm grading
    Fair
    Reported by two or more credible sources, with likely or confirmed near actions by a belligerent.
  • Suspected attacker
    General National Congress (GNC)

Sources (13) [ collapse]

Media
from sources (4) [ collapse]

  • Translation: Shelling of an air force in the Zafran area of Sirte, shrapnel hits a car causing its burning, the death of father and daughter and wounding another girl (Source: @rawadfree1)
  • Another picture of the scorched car (via rawadfree1)
  • Translation: Martyr Massoud Hamali. He died with his two daughters by bombing Fajr Libya flight today And news of the death of his third daughter Fatima (Source: @cleobatraa)
  • This media contains graphic content. Click to unblur.

    Translation: your blood is our blood... RIP my dear (Source: Ibrahim Al-Himal, the victims relative)

Geolocation notes (1) [ collapse]

Reports of the incident mention the neighbourhood of Zaafran (زعفران), for which the generic coordinates are: 31.206944, 16.549167. Due to limited satellite imagery and information available to Airwars, we were unable to verify the location further.

  • Reports of the incident mention the neighbourhood of Zaafran (زعفران).

    Imagery:
    Google Earth

General National Congress (GNC) Assessment:

  • Suspected belligerent
    General National Congress (GNC)
  • General National Congress (GNC) position on incident
    Not yet assessed

Summary

  • Civilian harm reported
    Yes
  • Civilians reported killed
    2 – 3
  • (1–2 children1 man)
  • Civilians reported injured
    0–1
  • Airwars civilian harm grading
    Fair
    Reported by two or more credible sources, with likely or confirmed near actions by a belligerent.
  • Suspected attacker
    General National Congress (GNC)

Sources (13) [ collapse]

Incident Code

LQ007a

Incident date

April 24, 2015

Location

سرت‎, Sirte, Libya

Airwars assessment

Dawa Alhaq reported a GNC/Libya Dawn airstrike in Sirte likely resulting in civilian harm: “A military aircraft belonging to the ‘Dawn of Libya’ militia, backed by Libya’s brothers who control Tripoli, launched air strikes on Thursday night on sites in the city of Sirte.
‘A Libyan warplane launched several air strikes on the sites of the Islamic state in the city on Thursday evening,’ a local official in Sirte said on condition of anonymity.
Among the targets targeted by the fighter, the complex is Ouagadougou, the centre of the city, which the fighters of the state take command and control headquarters.”

The local time of the incident is unknown.

Summary

  • Civilian harm reported
    Yes
  • Civilians reported killed
    Unknown
  • Airwars civilian harm grading
    Weak
    Single source claim, though sometimes featuring significant information.
  • Suspected attacker
    General National Congress (GNC)

Sources (1) [ collapse]

General National Congress (GNC) Assessment:

  • Suspected belligerent
    General National Congress (GNC)
  • General National Congress (GNC) position on incident
    Not yet assessed

Summary

  • Civilian harm reported
    Yes
  • Civilians reported killed
    Unknown
  • Airwars civilian harm grading
    Weak
    Single source claim, though sometimes featuring significant information.
  • Suspected attacker
    General National Congress (GNC)

Sources (1) [ collapse]

Incident Code

LQ007

Incident date

April 1, 2015

Location

الزنتان, Zintan, Airport, Jabal al Gharbi, Libya

Geolocation

31.771818, 12.248748 Note: The accuracy of this location is to Exact location (via Airwars) level. Continue to map

Airwars assessment

According to several local sources, GNC/Libya Dawn planes bombed Zintan airport as well as the nearby village of Rujban. Most sources reported material damage, though there was no mention of civilian harm.

Zintan Airport spokesperson Omar Maatouk, speaking to Libya Herald, said that the front of the airport building was damaged by the seven shells fired. He also said that there had been no civilian casualties.

The report said: “There were no casualties at Zintan, Matoq said, adding that a number of nearby houses had been hit by shrapnel. He later said that the aircraft used was an Aero L-39 jet trainer and named the pilots as from Ghariyan and the Tripoli suburb of Fashloum.”

The local time of the incident is unknown.

Summary

  • Civilian harm reported
    Yes
  • Civilians reported killed
    Unknown
  • Airwars civilian harm grading
    Fair
    Reported by two or more credible sources, with likely or confirmed near actions by a belligerent.
  • Suspected attacker
    General National Congress (GNC)

Sources (22) [ collapse]

Media
from sources (6) [ collapse]

  • Translation: Militias Dawn of Libya bombard residential areas in Rajaban, forcing the village to suspend the study. Libya (via Libyan™)
  • Another image of the aftermath (via Libyan™)
  • Another image of the aftermath (via Libyan™)
  • Another image of the aftermath (via Libyan™)
  • Another picture of the aftermath (via 988nabed)
  • Another picture of the aftermath (via 988nabed)

General National Congress (GNC) Assessment:

  • Suspected belligerent
    General National Congress (GNC)
  • General National Congress (GNC) position on incident
    Not yet assessed

Summary

  • Civilian harm reported
    Yes
  • Civilians reported killed
    Unknown
  • Airwars civilian harm grading
    Fair
    Reported by two or more credible sources, with likely or confirmed near actions by a belligerent.
  • Suspected attacker
    General National Congress (GNC)

Sources (22) [ collapse]

Incident Code

LC013

Incident date

January 5, 2015

Location

درنة‎: ميناء درنه, Derna Port, Derna, Libya

Geolocation

32.7798944, 22.70505 Note: The accuracy of this location is to Exact location (via Airwars) level. Continue to map

Airwars assessment

GNC planes allegedly bombed a Greek oil tanker killing a Greek engine cadet and a Romanian seaman on board, according to local media. Two Filipinos aboard were injured according to The Telegraph. Shorouk News reported a third person had been wounded.

The Telegraph provided significant details on the event, reporting that a 29-year old Greek engine cadet and unidentified Romanian seamen were killed when a rocket exploded on the deck of the ARAEVO, owned by Athens-based Aegean Shipping Management. Two Filipino nationals were also injured aboard the vessel, which was carrying 12,600 tones of crude oil when it was hit. Military officials allied with Libya’s internationally recognised government told Reuters the vessel had been warned not to enter the port and claimed it had been transporting Islamist militants to the city of Derna. But Libya’s National Oil Company said the tanker had only been delivering fuel and claimed that the relevant authorities had been informed of its arrival.

While most sources blamed the GNC for the attack, Erem News reported that the LNA was responsible for the raid, quoting their Major Mohammed Hijazi a number of our military officials directed our warnings, not to approach the ports of cities controlled by the Fajr of Libya and its loyalists, and that any piece of marine will become a legitimate target of the air force.

The local time of the incident is unknown.

Summary

  • Civilian harm reported
    Yes
  • Civilians reported killed
    2
  • Civilians reported injured
    2–3
  • Airwars civilian harm grading
    Contested
    Competing claims of responsibility e.g. multiple belligerents, or casualties also attributed to ground forces.
  • Suspected attackers
    Libyan National Army, General National Congress (GNC)

Sources (17) [ collapse]

Geolocation notes (1) [ collapse]

Reports of the incident mention an airstrike targeting an oil tanker five kilometers off the coast of Derna’s port (درنة‎). After investigating visual material from sources, we narrowed this location down to 32.7798944, 22.70505.

  • Reports of the incident mention an airstrike targeting an oil tanker five kilometers off the coast of Derna’s port (درنة‎)

    Imagery:
    Google Earth

Libyan National Army Assessment:

  • Suspected belligerent
    Libyan National Army
  • Libyan National Army position on incident
    Not yet assessed

General National Congress (GNC) Assessment:

  • Suspected belligerent
    General National Congress (GNC)
  • General National Congress (GNC) position on incident
    Not yet assessed

Summary

  • Civilian harm reported
    Yes
  • Civilians reported killed
    2
  • Civilians reported injured
    2–3
  • Airwars civilian harm grading
    Contested
    Competing claims of responsibility e.g. multiple belligerents, or casualties also attributed to ground forces.
  • Suspected attackers
    Libyan National Army, General National Congress (GNC)

Sources (17) [ collapse]

Incident Code

LC010

Incident date

December 28, 2014

Location

بن جواد, Bin Jawad, Sirte, Libya

Geolocation

30.806667, 18.062778 Note: The accuracy of this location is to Village level. Continue to map

Airwars assessment

Two physicians were killed and seven more people were reported wounded in an alleged GNC/Libya Dawn airstrike at a field hospital in Bin Jawad, according to local sources.

James Wheeler tweeted: Two physicians were reported killed and 7 other people injured by an airstrike near a field hospital at Bin Jawad.

Multiple sources have identified two victims (doctors).

According to @EbrahimGasuda, medical staff in the field hospital in the area of Ben Jawad were wounded and two doctors killed. who were present after the bombing of fighter aircraft belonging to the militias Haftar.

However, sources didn’t say whether the victims were military personnel or civilians.

The local time of the incident is unknown.

Summary

  • Civilian harm reported
    Yes
  • Civilians reported killed
    2
  • Civilians reported injured
    7
  • Airwars civilian harm grading
    Fair
    Reported by two or more credible sources, with likely or confirmed near actions by a belligerent.
  • Suspected attacker
    General National Congress (GNC)

Sources (8) [ collapse]

Media
from sources (3) [ collapse]

  • This media contains graphic content. Click to unblur.

    A picture shows Dr Suleiman Ahjeeba, killed in an alleged GNC/Libya Dawn strike on a field hospital in Bin Jawad, Dec 28th (via Al Manara Media)
  • This media contains graphic content. Click to unblur.

    A picture shows Dr Abdul Aziz Aaneibah, killed in an alleged GNC/Libya Dawn strike on a field hospital in Bin Jawad, Dec 28th (via Al Manara Media)

Geolocation notes

Reports of the incident mention a field hospital being struck in the village of Bin Jawad (بن جواد), for which the generic coordinates are: 30.806667, 18.062778. Due to limited satellite imagery and information available to Airwars, we were unable to verify the location further.

General National Congress (GNC) Assessment:

  • Suspected belligerent
    General National Congress (GNC)
  • General National Congress (GNC) position on incident
    Not yet assessed

Summary

  • Civilian harm reported
    Yes
  • Civilians reported killed
    2
  • Civilians reported injured
    7
  • Airwars civilian harm grading
    Fair
    Reported by two or more credible sources, with likely or confirmed near actions by a belligerent.
  • Suspected attacker
    General National Congress (GNC)

Sources (8) [ collapse]

Incident Code

LC002

Incident date

January 19, 2014

Location

قويرة المال, Qweira al Mal, Sabha, Libya

Geolocation

27.181167, 14.533500 Note: The accuracy of this location is to Exact location (via Airwars) level. Continue to map

Airwars assessment

Two children were reportedly killed in an air or artillery strike in Sabha in the south of Libya.

A pro-Gaddafi page on Facebook identified the victims as the 14-year-old and a 17-years-old, and another victim at 14 years old, who lost his leg. It added that they were killed in the Hey al Hijara neighbourhood. Another child was reportedly injured.

Libya Sky reported the location of the strike as Qweira al Mal gate at the northern entrance to the city of Sabha (Jebel Ali region) on Sunday, targeting a gathering of armed groups outside.

The local time of the incident is unknown.

Summary

  • Civilian harm reported
    Yes
  • Civilians reported killed
    2
  • Civilians reported injured
    1
  • Airwars civilian harm grading
    Fair
    Reported by two or more credible sources, with likely or confirmed near actions by a belligerent.
  • Suspected attacker
    General National Congress (GNC)

Sources (6) [ collapse]

Geolocation notes

Reports of the incident mention Qweira al Mal gate (قويرة المال) for which the coordinates are: 27.181167, 14.533500.  Due to limited satellite imagery and information available to Airwars, we were unable to verify the location further.

General National Congress (GNC) Assessment:

  • Suspected belligerent
    General National Congress (GNC)
  • General National Congress (GNC) position on incident
    Not yet assessed

Summary

  • Civilian harm reported
    Yes
  • Civilians reported killed
    2
  • Civilians reported injured
    1
  • Airwars civilian harm grading
    Fair
    Reported by two or more credible sources, with likely or confirmed near actions by a belligerent.
  • Suspected attacker
    General National Congress (GNC)

Sources (6) [ collapse]