Geolocation
Airwars assessment
One civilian died and six were injured in alleged Coalition airstrikes on Al Tabaqa, according to local sources.
Raqqa is Being Slaughtered Silently (RBSS) said that the Coalition launched raids “targeting the areas of the coach station and the market leading to the fall of a number of civilian wounded.”
Step also blamed the Coalition, saying: “Our correspondent reported that eight air raids targeted the neighborhood near the market in al Tabaqa and al Yarmouk school which led to the total destruction of the school and left a number of civilians, including women and children injured.”
Other reports by RBSS “noted great destruction in the buildings of al Sina’a school”. According to Al Raed La Yakzub Ahlahu [IS propaganda], “two children, two women and two men injured following six raids by the international coalition on al Tabaqa west of al Raqqa.”
Baladi also attributed the incident to the Coalition, reporting: “The sources explained that the raids caused the martyrdom of one civilian and wounding several others, all of them civilians, as well as targeting the health industry School and school completely destroyed, while one of the raids targeted a civilian houses near the swimming pool of Andalusia in the second quarter.” Al Sharqiya reported that the Coalition carried out eight raids.
On March 4th the Coalition announced it was carrying out an assessment into the incident – the first such confirmed case of Donald Trump’s presidency. A month later it reported: “Jan. 22, 2017, near Al-Tabqah, Syria, via social media report: After a review of available information and strike video it was assessed that no Coalition strikes were conducted in this geographic area that correspond to the report of civilian casualties.”
The local time of the incident is unknown.
Geolocation notes
Reports of the incident mention the city of Tabaqah (الثورة), for which the generic coordinates are: 35.8295049, 38.5360909. Due to limited satellite imagery and information available to Airwars, we were unable to verify the location further.
Summary
Sources (18) [ collapse]
Media
from sources (8) [ collapse]
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Al tabaqa - photos showing the destruction in al Sina’a school [industry school] (via RBSS)
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Al tabaqa - photos showing the destruction in al Sina’a school [industry school] (via RBSS)
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Al tabaqa - photos showing the destruction in al Sina’a school [industry school] (via RBSS)
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Al tabaqa - photos showing the destruction in al Sina’a school [industry school] (via RBSS)
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Al tabaqa - photos showing the destruction in al Sina’a school [industry school] (via RBSS)
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Al tabaqa - photos showing the destruction in al Sina’a school [industry school] (via RBSS)
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 and strike video it was assessed that there is insufficient evidence to find civilians were harmed in this strike
Original strike reports
For January 21st-22nd it stated: “Near Ar Raqqah, 22 strikes engaged 12 ISIL tactical units; destroyed nine fighting positions, two tunnels, two tanks, an IED factory, and an ISIL headquarters; and suppressed three ISIL tactical units.”