Geolocation
Airwars assessment
Three civilians died in alleged Coalition strikes on Al Bu A’ssi village, according to local strikes.
Raqqa is Being Slaughtered Silently reported that the Coalition carried out strikes “on the outskirts of al Bu A’ssi village this morning and named one of the victims. The victim was also named by the Violations Documentation Center.
RFS, Step and Baladi and Qasioun and Syrianpc also pointed towards the Coalition.
The local time of the incident is unknown.
The victims were named as:
Geolocation notes
Reports of the incident mention the village of Al Bu A’ssi (البوعاصي), for which the generic coordinates are: 35.7771781, 38.3250009. Due to limited satellite imagery and information available to Airwars, we were unable to verify the location further.
Summary
Sources (11) [ 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 March 31st-1st April, the Coalition reported: “Near Ar Raqqah, four strikes engaged an ISIS tactical unit; destroyed a weapons storage facility and a VBIED; and damaged a bridge.”
For April 1st – April 2nd, the Coalition reported: “Near Ar Raqqah, five strikes engaged four ISIS tactical units; destroyed eight barges and five fighting positions; and suppressed an ISIS tactical unit.”