Geolocation
Airwars assessment
The Smart News Agency reported that a likely Coalition strike “targeted an ambulance while it was heading to the National Hospital in Al Tabaqa, resulting in the death of the patient who was being transported, two nurses and the driver.”
According to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, at least five civilians died in what was believed to be a Coalition raid.
The incident was first reported on April 22, 2017 at 3:35 pm by Smart News Agency.
Summary
Sources (2) [ collapse]
Geolocation notes
Reports of the incident mention the city of Al Tabaqa (الطبقة, also known as Al Thawra, الثورة), for which the coordinates are: 35.8295049, 38.5360909.
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.
Assessment:
Civilian casualty statements
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Dec 28, 2017
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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. (1357)
Original strike reports
For April 21st-22nd: “Near Tabqah, eight strikes engaged five ISIS tactical units and destroyed three fighting positions, an ISIS vehicle and a command and control node.”
For April 22nd-23rd: “Near Tabqah, eight strikes engaged six ISIS tactical units and destroyed five fighting positions and two IEDs.”
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English/Original
‘Sunday 23 April – Typhoons destroyed an armed truck south-west of Tabqah in Syria, while Tornados bombed a Daesh position in western Mosul…On Sunday 23 April, Typhoons assisted the SDF, destroying an armed truck near Tabqah, west of Raqqa. In western Mosul, a Daesh-held building was struck by a Paveway IV, released by a Tornado flight, after Iraqi troops came under fire from the building.’