Incident Code
Incident Date
Location
Geolocation
Geolocation
Airwars Assessment
(Previous Incident Code: S1192)
Multiple local sources reported the death of a female civilian after alleged US-led Coalition artillery strikes that hit the street of the family home near the Imam Al Nawawi Mosque, Raqqa City.
The woman killed has been identified as Khansaa Mohammed Qantar.
However, this victim is also named in incident CS1361, reportedly killed by artillery shelling on a different location in Raqqa, the Al Tawassoui’ya (التوسعية) neighborhood.
Since Amnesty International conducted extensive field research, it was identified by a relative “Mohammed”, that she was killed on the 12th of August.
According to the Amnesty and Airwars’ joint April 2019 report War in Raqqa: Rhetoric versus Reality, “A 40-year-old woman, Khansa’ al-Qantar, was killed in the garden of her home by shrapnel from an artillery shell which struck the street outside her house.”
A relative gave a testimonial to an on the ground Amnesty researcher. He said,”Look at the holes which the artillery shrapnel made in the metal gate. You can imagine such what shrapnel does to the human body. It kills.”
According to research Khansa was killed by artillery shrapnel while in her house. The initial Airwars geolocation was incorrect as it suggested the house was intact in the aftermath of the strike. Artillery hit the street and killed the victim while she was inside her home. The house which Airwars has geolocated is the same house where a small impact radius missile killed four men on the 27th September 2017. See incident CS1536. According to Amnesty not much damage was done to the house.
In April 2019 the Coalition announced that it had classed this allegation of civilian harm as non-credible, noting: “After review of all available strike records it was determined that more likely than not civilian casualties did not occur as a result of a Coalition strike.”
Key Information
Geolocation Notes
Reports of the incident mention a residential building was targeted near the Imam Al Nawawi mosque. The coordinates for this mosque are: 35.956324, 38.999290. Based on images published by RBSS (4th image above) Airwars was able to establish the exact coordinates of the building that was struck through geolocation: 35.957190, 38.999660. Damage to this building can be seen on satellite imagery of August 13, 2017. The Amnesty and Airwars’s joint April 2019 report “War in Raqqa: Rhetoric versus Reality” reported that this coordinate was incorrect alleging that coordinates were of the building across the street. The photo of house with yellow walls is not the right house. The garden however is. In reality the street was targeted and said victim was killed by artillery shrapnel while in her house. The house which Airwars has geolocated is the same house where a small impact radius missile killed four men on the 27th September 2017. See incident CS1536. According to Amnesty not much damage was done to the house.
Damage to a residential building near the Imam Al Nawawi mosque (left: August 7, 2017; right: August 13, 2017)
Imagery: © 2018 Google
Before strike. (via Amnesty)
After strike. (via Amnesty)