Two people, according to local sources, identified as Saber Sinjar Al-Fahd and Sami Dilis Al-Aoun, were killed allegedly by US-led Coalition and Kurdish SDF forces during an airstrike on an ISIS “sleeper cell” or the house of a former member of the oppostion factions in the city of Hajin, east of Deir Ezzor, Syria, on November 30th 2021 at dawn. None of the sources refer to Sami as being a militant while sources are conflicted as to whether Saber was affiliated with ISIS.

A local souce, @Sada_AlSharqieh tweeted that the men killed were cousins.

The Syrian Observatory of Human Rights reported that the two killed were apparently shot, and that this coincided with the airdrop operation.

According to Watan News, one person was arrested on charges of belonging to ISIS. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights added that the person arrested by the “International Coalition” forces was also released after the end of the security operation.

There is somewhat confusing reports, with Furat and other sources reporting that the house was Saber Al-Sinjar’s, one of the men reported to have been shot, and that he was arrested and taken to an unknown destination. According to the Euphrate Post, Al-Sinjar had fled about three years ago to Turkish territory after the SDF and Coalition forces took control of the area, only to return several months before this incident took place.  However, Syrian Observatory for Human Rights reported that the person arrested was later released at the end of the security operation.

Local sources who reported to Nedaa said that Saber Al-Sinjar was working in Turkey and has no political activity. Therefore, whether he was or was not still a member of ISIS remains unclear.

Apparently the operation lasted for around four hours, during which the Coalition launched stun grenades, “which caused a state of panic and fear among civilians living in the area.”

Furat reported that the SDF launched a ground raid operation with the support of a US-led Coalition aircraft, and that the SDF “used sound bombs in the raid, in conjunction with the flight of helicopters of the International Coalition at a low altitude, and one of the SDF military vehicles fell in an empty water canal (Al-Sarb).”

In a civilian casualty assessment released November 3, 2023, the Coalition classed this event as ‘non credible’, claiming that “Based on a thorough review of all available information, it was determined that any potentially corroborating operation affected only legitimate military targets, with no civilian casualties.”