Civilian Casualties

Civilian Casualties

Incident Code

CI514

Incident date

March 6, 2017

Location

الدواسة, Mosul, Dawassa area, Nineveh, Iraq

Geolocation

36.332586, 43.1388688

Airwars assessment

Local residents sources said that between 41 and 52 civilians were killed, including 23 children and one woman, and more than 70 injured after Coalition airstrikes and shelling by Iraqi government forces struck civilian homes at dawn, at the right side of Mosul.

Witnesses told Iraq News that there were “dozens of women and children buried under the rubble of their homes, which collapsed over their heads.”

A volunteer doctor in Mosul, named as Dr. Adam Saudarson, told Ajel Al Mosul that – in this week alone – 700 civilians had been killed and more than 150 were missing as a result of battles in west Mosul.

Yaqein also reported the death of hundreds of civilians killed and wounded in a few days. It spoke of “about 420” dead and “more than 500 wounded”. It said it expected the numbers to become even higher, “with the continuation of the bombing and destruction and the targeting of civilians.”

The local time of the incident is unknown.

Summary

  • Civilian harm reported
    Yes
  • Civilians reported killed
    41 – 52
  • (23 children1 woman)
  • Civilians reported injured
    70
  • Airwars civilian harm grading
    Contested
    Competing claims of responsibility e.g. multiple belligerents, or casualties also attributed to ground forces.
  • Suspected belligerents
    US-led Coalition, Iraq Government Forces

Sources (13) [ 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 information on the time and location
  • Civilian deaths conceded
    None
  • Civilian injuries conceded
    None
  • Stated location
    near Mosul, Iraq
    Nearest population center

Civilian casualty statements

US-led Coalition
  • Oct 27, 2017
  • The report contains insufficient information of the time, location and details to assess its credibility.

Original strike reports

US-led Coalition

For March 5th-March 6th the Coalition publicly stated: “Near Mosul, six strikes engaged six ISIS tactical units and an ISIS staging area; destroyed 11 fighting positions, eight mortar systems, seven vehicles, four VBIEDs, three ISIS-held buildings, two medium machine guns, two command and control nodes, two roadblocks, a heavy machine gun, an artillery system, and an ISIS checkpoint; damaged 11 supply routes, eight vehicles, and two fuel tanker trucks; and suppressed 10 mortar teams and three ISIS tactical units.”

Iraq Government Forces Assessment:

  • Suspected belligerent
    Iraq Government Forces
  • Iraq Government Forces position on incident
    Not yet assessed

Summary

  • Civilian harm reported
    Yes
  • Civilians reported killed
    41 – 52
  • (23 children1 woman)
  • Civilians reported injured
    70
  • Airwars civilian harm grading
    Contested
    Competing claims of responsibility e.g. multiple belligerents, or casualties also attributed to ground forces.
  • Suspected belligerents
    US-led Coalition, Iraq Government Forces

Sources (13) [ collapse]