Geolocation
Airwars assessment
Four civilians were reported killed and between 8 and 12 injured in an alleged Coalition airstrike on al Rahiat.
In a detailed report, Syria News said that “two children and their parents were killed and 12 other civilians were injured after midnight, due to international coalition targeting of al Rahiat village under the control of Islamic State in Raqqa with two raids. The media opposition activist Mohamed Osman, quoting civilian sources from the village, told Syria News Desk that ,’the said Coalition aircraft targeted with vacuum missiles houses in the centre of Rahiat and another on the outskirts, confirming that there 4 injured who are in a critical situation and were transported by the residents to the National Hospital in Raqqa, while the others were taken to various medical points of the city. Osman added that the raids also resulted in the deaths of a number of livestock and the destruction of two houses completely and burning civilian vehicle and other physical damage to property.”
Others also reported the event – often using identical language.
The local time of the incident is unknown.
Geolocation notes
Reports of the incident mention the village of Al Rahiat (الرحيات), for which the generic coordinates are: 36.08, 39.05917. Due to limited satellite imagery and information available to Airwars, we were unable to verify the location further.
Summary
Sources (5) [ collapse]
Attached to this civilian harm incident is a provisional reconciliation of the Pentagon's declassified assessment of this civilian harm allegation, based on matching date and locational information.
The declassified documents were obtained by Azmat Khan and the New York Times through Freedom of Information requests and lawsuits filed since March 2017, and are included 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 of the reported civilian casualties.
Original strike reports
For November 28th-29th, the Coalition reported that “Near Ar Raqqah, two strikes destroyed three oil well heads, two oil pump jacks, two oil refinement equipment pieces, an oil tank, and construction equipment.”