Airwars assessment
Local residents and military and medical sources said that up to two dozen civilians were killed or injured due to different kinds of shelling, and strikes by US Apache helicopters. This reportedly occurred during an ongoing battle around the Bab Al Tob area and other ancient neighborhoods in the center of Mosul.
Naynawa Alghad reported on Facebook that due to the heavy clashes on Thursday morning [March 16th] between Iraqi forces and ISIL in the old parts of the city, the US intervened with Apache helicopters. A medical source said that the “battles until dawn on Thursday left dozens of dead and wounded civilians, [who] were killed in their homes by the fighting.”
Iraqi Spring said that up to 20 people were killed and 50 injured.
However, Yaqein reported that four people, including women and children, were killed and six wounded. Nineveh Media Center posted a photo (see below) of the aftermath of the strikes, saying “This is Mosul, without comment!!!”.
The local time of the incident is unknown.
Summary
Sources (6) [ collapse]
Media
from sources (1) [ collapse]
Attached to this civilian harm incident is the Pentagon's declassified assessment of this civilian harm allegation, obtained by Azmat Khan and the New York Times through Freedom of Information requests and lawsuits filed since March 2017, 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 geographical area that correspond to the report of civilian casualties.
Original strike reports
For March 14th-15th: “Near Mosul, five strikes engaged five ISIS tactical units and an ISIS sniper team; destroyed 11 fighting positions, five mortar systems, three watercraft, two supply caches, two VBIEDs, a medium machine gun, a heavy machine gun, a rocket-propelled grenade system, an anti-air artillery system, and an ISIS headquarters; damaged 18 supply routes; and suppressed 11 ISIS mortar teams and six ISIS tactical units.” For March 15th – 16th: “Near Mosul, five strikes engaged three ISIS tactical units; destroyed 11 fighting positions, four mortar systems, two ISIS-held buildings, two vehicles, a medium machine gun, an artillery system, and a rocket-propelled grenade system; damaged 17 supply routes and three ISIS-held buildings; and suppressed six ISIS mortar teams and three ISIS tactical units.”