Geolocation
Airwars assessment
According to the Smart News Agency, Khelafa and Syriapc, five civilians including three children died and three others were wounded in an alleged Coalition airstrike on Ratla village and Al Akeirshi village. The injured were reportedly treated at a nearby field hospital.
No additional details are presently known.
The local time of the incident is unknown.
Geolocation notes
Reports of the incident mention the village of Ratlah (رطلة), for which the generic coordinates are: 35.882222, 39.048611. Due to limited satellite imagery and information available to Airwars, we were unable to verify the location further.
Summary
Sources (3) [ 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. (1276)
Original strike reports
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.”
For April 2nd - April 3rd, the Coalition reported: "Near Ar Raqqah, one strike engaged an ISIS tactical unit and destroyed a fighting position."