Airwars assessment
Up to three civilians were killed in an alleged Coalition airstrike on al Sayyal village, according to local media – though there was uncertainty regarding two of the victims’ combatant status.
According to Jalaa, on man “of the village of Sayyal died after leaving Abu Kamal for Damascus. His family lost contact with him five days previously”. The source did not say how the victim died.
Two of the named civilians were allegedly killed “by a raid targeting their vehicle near Sayyal”. However, published images of these men holding guns suggested that they may not have been civilians.
The local time of the incident is unknown.
- Haj Hamid Ahmed al-Hattroush Adult male killed
- Mohammed Rajab al-Hanashul – aka Abu Zeid Adult male killed
- Khalaf al Dawas Adult male reportedly Mohammed Rajab al-Hanashul’s “guard” killed
Summary
Sources (4) [ collapse]
Media
from sources (2) [ collapse]
Geolocation notes
Reports of the incident mention the village of Al Sayyal (قریة السیال), Al Boukamal countryside, Deir ez-Zor governorate. The coordinates for this village are: 34.5713889, 40.9066667.
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 September 17th - 18th, the Coalition reported: "Near Abu Kamal, three strikes engaged an ISIS tactical unit and destroyed a logistics node and an ISIS headquarters" and "Near Dayr Az Zawr, two strikes engaged an ISIS tactical unit and destroyed a VBIED and an ISIS headquarters"
For September 18th - 19th the Coalition reported: "On Sept. 18, near Dayr Az Zawr, Syria, four strikes engaged an ISIS tactical unit and damaged three supply routes"
‘Sunday 17 September – a Reaper eliminated a truck-bomb near Dayr az Zawr, while Tornados bombed a weapons store near Abu Kamal in eastern Syria…The next day, a Reaper conducted yet another successful attack north-east of Dayr az Zawr, eliminating a truck-bomb with a Hellfire, whilst to the south-east, close to the border with Iraq, two Tornados bombed a weapons store near Abu Kamal.’