Geolocation
Airwars assessment
One civilian male was reported killed in alleged Coalition airstrikes in Al Salhabiya Al Sharqiya village in western Raqqa.
Although all three said the victim was killed as a result of air raids, only Sharqiya Voice alleged the Coalition was responsible.
It reported that Coalition airplanes provided aerial cover to the YPG Kurdish militia units as they fought ISIL fighters in the area.
In December 2018, the Coalition announced that it had classed the event as non credible due to a lack of available evidence of civilian harm: “May 21, 2017, near al Salhabiya, Syria, via Airwars report. 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.”
The local time of the incident is unknown.
The victims were named as:
Geolocation notes
Reports of the incident mention the village of Al Sallhabiya (السلحبية الشرقية), for which the generic coordinates are: 35.953611, 38.786389. Due to limited satellite imagery and information available to Airwars, we were unable to verify the location further.
Summary
Sources (5) [ 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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May 21, 2017, near al Salhabiya, Syria, via Airwars report. 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 May 20th-21st, the Coalition reported: “Near Raqqah, five strikes engaged three ISIS tactical units and destroyed six fighting positions, two vehicles, an ISIS staging area and a construction vehicle.” It also later reported that additionally on May 20th “Near Raqqah, Syria, one strikes destroyed an ISIS headquarters and an ISIS staging area.”
For May 21st -22nd, the Coalition reported: "Near Raqqah, 13 strikes [1 British?] engaged 12 ISIS tactical units and destroyed 11 fighting positions, nine vehicles, two supply caches, a mortar system, an ISIS headquarters; and suppressed an ISIS tactical unit."
"Sunday 21 May – Typhoons destroyed a weapons stockpile on the outskirts of Raqqa, Tornados dealt with a sniper and a heavy machine-gun in Mosul… The latter hit a further pair of targets in Mosul on Sunday 21 May, eliminating a sniper and a heavy machine-gun team. On the eastern outskirts of Raqqah, Typhoons destroyed a weapons stockpile."