Geolocation
Airwars assessment
It was reported by several sources that the Coalition struck Hit city, resulting in the injury of eight civilians including three children and two women.
According to the local site Hit News, an airstrike struck a militant vehicle carrying weapons, ammunition and food, injuring civilians in the immediate vicinity. The Coalition has confirmed targeting an ‘ISIL home-made explosives cache’ in the city.
However in its July 2017 report, the Coalition classed the event as non credible saying it had not conducted strikes in the vicinity: “Dec. 16, 2015, near Hit, Iraq, via Airwars report: After a review of available information it was assessed that no Coalition strikes were conducted in the geographic area that correspond to the report of civilian casualties.”
Given that the Coalition had confirmed strikes at Hit on the day, Airwars has requested additional information form the Coalition – and continues to assess this as a possible event.
The local time of the incident is unknown.
Summary
Sources (5) [ collapse]
Media
from sources (1) [ collapse]
Attached to this civilian harm incident is a provisional reconciliation of the Pentagon's declassified assessment of this civilian harm allegation, based on matching date and locational information.
The declassified documents were obtained by Azmat Khan and the New York Times through Freedom of Information requests and lawsuits filed since March 2017, and are included alongside the corresponding press release published by the Pentagon. Airwars is currently analysing the contents of each file, and will update our own assessments accordingly.
US-led Coalition Assessment:
Civilian casualty statements
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After a review of available information it was assessed that no Coalition strikes were conducted in the geographic area that correspond to the report of civilian casualties.
Original strike reports
For December 16th-17th 2015, the Coalition reported that “Near Hit, one strike destroyed an ISIL home-made explosives cache.”