Airwars assessment
Local sources reported the death of a male civilian as a result of an alleged Coalition military action in the vicinity of Tal al Jayer, east of the city of Shaddadi in the southern countryside of Hasakah governorate.
An Al-Khabour correspondent stated that helicopters engaged in a “landing operation” near the Al Sheikh fuel station, allegedly targeting Iraqis and arresting three families, including women and children. According to the report, one civilian was killed in accompanying clashes between Coalition forces and so-called Islamic State. The correspondent reported that the victim, who was identified as Alaa al Barzan, who just “happened to be there”.
The death of the civilian was also reported by Syria News Station, a pro-regime outlet, which also made mention of a number of injured civilians. SNS stated that its sources “confirmed that the clashes resulted in the martyrdom of a civilian and injuring others from the Barzan family” after the “evacuation plan” of US helicopters at 11pm.
Damascus News Network reported that the event took place without any airstrikes. Local sources told the network that indeed three US helicopters had landed near the fuel station to transfer three ISIS families of Iraqi nationality. However, although US jets were said to to accompany the operation, they flew over the region “without any targeting”. That description did not however rule out small arms fire on the ground.
The incident occured at 11:00 pm local time.
The victims were named as:
Family members (3)
- Alaa al Barzan Age unknown male killed
- Unknown Barzan relative Age unknown injured
- Unknown Barzan relative Age unknown injured
Summary
Sources (4) [ collapse]
Geolocation notes
Reports of the incident mention a “helicopter landing operation” by the Coalition in the vicinity of the village of Tal Jayer, East of Al Shadadi in the Hasakah countryside, at the petrol station Sheikh. One civilian was reported killed in accompanying clashes between Coalition forces and the so-called Islamic State. The exact coordinates of the petrol station are: 36.0393483, 41.1261177
US-led Coalition Assessment:
Civilian casualty statements
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April 9, 2018, near Tel al-Jayer, Syria, via Airwars. 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 April 9th, the Coalition reported that “On April 9 in Syria, Coalition military forces conducted three strikes consisting of three engagements against Daesh targets. Near Dashisha, two strike engaged one Daesh tactical unit and destroyed two Daesh vehicles and one Daesh logistics hub. Near Al Shadaddi, one strike engaged one Daesh tactical unit and destroyed one Daesh logistics hub."