Civilian Casualties

Civilian Casualties

Incident Code

CS1961

Incident date

July 16, 2021

Location

ذيبان, Thiban, Deir Ezzor, Syria

Geolocation

35.0162094, 40.5101418 Note: The accuracy of this location is to Village level. Continue to map

Airwars assessment

A man and his son were reportedly killed in a raid in Deir Ezzor’s Thiban town carried out by Syrian Democratic Forces with support of the US-led coalition at dawn on July 16, 2021.

The dead were identified as Miteb Sherida Al-Ghadir and his son Ahmed.

@Sada_AlSharqieh said they had been grazing their sheep at the time of the incident and “had no links with the terrorist organization ISIS or any other party”. NPA Syria meanwhile reported that two members of Islamic State had been killed, quoting a military source in the Syrian Democratic Forces. However, the ISIS members they were referring to were not named.

The Syrian Democratic Forces shot the two men dead, according to Jesr Press, when “a number of people fled for fear of arbitrary arrests” and “the patrol members opened fire directly on these people”. NPA Syria reported that a military source told them that the forces, “with the support of the International Coalition, carried out a landing operation on the Al-Latwa neighborhood in the town of Thiban, where clashes took place with ISIS members.”

Eyewitnesses told Furat SY that a “force consisting of several cars raided civilian homes, without warning, accompanied by indiscriminate shooting between the houses with the aim of terrorizing the ‘wanted’”. The two men were shot in front of their house, according to its reporting. “This incident sparked a wave of panic among the civilians and generated a state of anger and frustration among the relatives of the victims, forcing the SDF to withdraw from the town,” it added.

The local time of the incident is unknown.

Summary

  • Strike status
    Likely strike
  • Strike type
    Counter-Terrorism Action (Ground)
  • Civilian harm reported
    Yes
  • Civilians reported killed
    2
  • (2 men)
  • Cause of injury / death
    Small arms and light weapons
  • Airwars civilian harm grading
    Fair
    Reported by two or more credible sources, with likely or confirmed near actions by a belligerent.
  • Suspected attackers
    US-led Coalition, Syrian Democratic Forces
  • Suspected target
    ISIS
  • Belligerents reported killed
    2

Sources (10) [ collapse]

Media
from sources (2) [ collapse]

  • This media contains graphic content. Click to unblur.

    Graphic image of Mutaib Sherida Al-Ghadeer, who was killed in a raid in the town of Thiban on July 16, 2021. (Image posted by @YusufAd76532779)
  • This media contains graphic content. Click to unblur.

    Graphic image of Ahmed Sherida Al-Ghadeer, who was killed in a raid in the town of Thiban on July 16, 2021. (Image posted by @YusufAd76532779)

Geolocation notes

Reports of the incident mention a strike within the Latwa neighbourhood (حي اللطوة) in the village of Diban (ذيبان). Due to limited satellite imagery and information available to Airwars, we were unable to verify the location further. The generic coordinates for Dhiban are: 35.0162094, 40.5101418.

US-led Coalition Assessment:

  • Suspected belligerent
    US-led Coalition
  • US-led Coalition position on incident
    Not yet assessed

Syrian Democratic Forces Assessment:

  • Suspected belligerent
    Syrian Democratic Forces
  • Syrian Democratic Forces position on incident
    Not yet assessed

Summary

  • Strike status
    Likely strike
  • Strike type
    Counter-Terrorism Action (Ground)
  • Civilian harm reported
    Yes
  • Civilians reported killed
    2
  • (2 men)
  • Cause of injury / death
    Small arms and light weapons
  • Airwars civilian harm grading
    Fair
    Reported by two or more credible sources, with likely or confirmed near actions by a belligerent.
  • Suspected attackers
    US-led Coalition, Syrian Democratic Forces
  • Suspected target
    ISIS
  • Belligerents reported killed
    2

Sources (10) [ collapse]