Geolocation
Airwars assessment
One civilian died and two others were injured in an alleged Coalition airstrike on the villages of Khatouniya and al Salhabiya, according to a single source.
Smart reported that “a local source said Coalition aircraft bombed the villages of Khatouniya and Salhabiya in the western Raqqa countryside which resulted in the killing of one civilian and injuring two shepherds in the area one of them is in a serious condition.”
The local time of the incident is unknown.
Summary
Sources (2) [ 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 that correspond to the report of civilian casualties.
Original strike reports
For February 18th-19th, the Coalition reported: “Near Ar Raqqah, 10 strikes engaged seven ISIS tactical units and destroyed four oil storage tanks, three fighting positions, two ISIS-held buildings, two vehicles, a weapons cache, an oil refinement still and a communications station.” For February 19th-20th, they reported: “Near Ar Raqqah, eight strikes engaged five ISIS tactical units and destroyed two ISIS headquarters, a vehicle, a command and control node, a VBIED, a VBIED facility, an artillery system, and a tunnel.”