Civilian Casualties

Civilian Casualties

Incident Code

CI232

Incident date

April 22, 2016

Location

الموصل‎, Mosul, Al-Malyia, Nineveh, Iraq

Geolocation

36.3427151, 43.1594467 Note: The accuracy of this location is to Neighbourhood/area level. Continue to map

Airwars assessment

Four families comprising 36 civilians, including women and children, were killed in the Al-Maliya district east of Mosul in a strike by the international coalition, according to a senior medical source in Nineveh quoted by NINA.

In a rarely named citation, Director of the Emergency General Hospital in Mosul Dr Mahdi al-Rubaie told the National Iraqi News Agency that “the international coalition bombed a Daesh site resulting in the martyrdom of four families east of Mosul.”

NINA noted that Dr al-Rubaie added that the bodies of “36 civilians, including 17 women and 11 children arrived at the forensic medicine in Mosul at dawn today.”

In what may be a linked event, MNN reported the death of an internally displaced woman from Salahudin province, killed after a Coalition strike in the Agriculture neighbourhood.

In its July 2017 report the Coalition classed the event as non credible based on available evidence of civilian harm: “April 22, 2016, near Mosul, Iraq, via Airwars report: After a review of available information and strike video it was assessed that there is insufficient evidence to find that civilians were harmed in this strike.”

Given the named source, Airwars continues to assess this as a likely event – and has requested additional clarification from the Coalition.

 

The local time of the incident is unknown.

Summary

  • Civilian harm reported
    Yes
  • Civilians reported killed
    36 – 37
  • (11 children17–18 women)
  • Civilians reported injured
    8
  • Airwars civilian harm grading
    Fair
    Reported by two or more credible sources, with likely or confirmed near actions by a belligerent.
  • Suspected belligerent
    US-led Coalition

Sources (4) [ collapse]

CJTF–OIR Declassified Assessment and Press Release

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.

Declassified Assessment Press Release

US-led Coalition Assessment:

  • Suspected belligerent
    US-led Coalition
  • US-led Coalition position on incident
    Non credible / Unsubstantiated
    Insufficient information to assess that, more likely than not, a Coalition strike resulted in civilian casualties.
  • Reason for non-credible assessment
    Insufficient evidence of civilian harm
  • Civilian deaths conceded
    None
  • Civilian injuries conceded
    None
  • Stated location
    near Mosul, Iraq
    Nearest population center

Civilian casualty statements

US-led Coalition
  • Jul 7, 2017
  • After a review of available information and strike video it was assessed that there is insufficient evidence to find that civilians were harmed in this strike.

Original strike reports

US-led Coalition

The Coalition reports for April 21st-22nd 2016 that “Near Mosul, five strikes struck three separate ISIL tactical units and destroyed an ISIL weapons cache, an ISIL assembly area, and three ISIL supply caches and suppressed two separate ISIL fighting positions.”

Summary

  • Civilian harm reported
    Yes
  • Civilians reported killed
    36 – 37
  • (11 children17–18 women)
  • Civilians reported injured
    8
  • Airwars civilian harm grading
    Fair
    Reported by two or more credible sources, with likely or confirmed near actions by a belligerent.
  • Suspected belligerent
    US-led Coalition

Sources (4) [ collapse]