Airwars assessment
More than four years after the event, the Coalition finally conceded the death of a civilian during an October 2015 airstrike on Qayarrah.
According to a field investigation conducted by reporters Azmah Khan and Anand Gopal for the New York Times Magazine, one civilian was killed by a Coalition airstrike on Qayyarah in this incident.
According to their reporting, the following occurred: “On or near 10/30/2015, an airstrike on Qayyarah City Hall, which had been overtaken by ISIS, resulted in the death of civilian Abdullah Khudr Ali, a retired military officer, who’d been nearby, and was struck in the head by shrapnel.”
In its October 2019 civilian casualty assessment report, the Coalition accepted responsibility for the death, noting: “October 30, 2015, in Qayyarah, Iraq, via New York Times report. Coalition aircraft conducted an airstrike against a Daesh facility. Regrettably, one civilian was unintentionally killed as a result of the strike. Case # 2349 Location: 38SLE454619”.
The local time of the incident is unknown.
- Abdullah Khudr Ali Adult male Retired military officer killed
Summary
Sources (2) [ collapse]
US-led Coalition Assessment:
Civilian casualty statements
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October 30, 2015, in Qayyarah, Iraq, via New York Times report. Coalition aircraft conducted an airstrike against a Daesh facility. Regrettably, one civilian was unintentionally killed as a result of the strike. Case # 2349 Location: 38SLE454619
Original strike reports
Iraq
Near Al Qaim, one strike struck an ISIL logistical facility.
Near Kisik, one strike struck an ISIL tactical unit.
Near Mosul, one strike struck an ISIL fighting position.
Near Qayyarah, one strike struck an ISIL staging area.
Near Ramadi, four strikes struck an ISIL tactical unit and destroyed an ISIL recoilless rifle, an ISIL heavy machine gun, two ISIL fighting positions, an ISIL mortar system, an ISIL weapons cache, three command and control nodes, and denied ISIL access to terrain.
Near Sinjar, four strikes struck four separate ISIL tactical units and destroyed four ISIL
fighting positions and two ISIL bunkers.
Near Sultan Abdallah, one strike struck an ISIL tactical unit and wounded an ISIL
fighter.
Near Tal Afar, one strike [Canadian] destroyed an ISIL checkpoint and wounded two ISIL fighters. Strike assessments are based on initial reports. All aircraft returned to base safely.