Turkish Military in Iraq & Syria

An internally displaced Kurdish family in northern Iraq, 2016 (Maranie R. Staab)

Belligerent
Turkish Military
Country
Iraq
Syria
start date
end date
Civilian Harm Status
Belligerent Assessment
Declassified Documents
Infrastructure

Incident Code

TI088

Incident date

October 16, 2022

Location

برادوست, Bradost area, Erbil, Iraq

Airwars assessment

At least one civilian, a woman, was injured by alleged Turkish airstrikes or drone strikes on the Bradost area in northern Erbil province on October 16, 2022.

Kurdistan 24 reported that a 30 year old woman named Sharmin Asad was injured by Turkish airstrike in the Bradost area in northern Erbil province. Ihsan Chalabi, the mayor of Sidakan, told Kurdistan 24 that the injured woman is from Sideman district and she was in the area visiting her relatives. She was transferred to the hospital and is receiving medical treatment, and her condition is stable.

BasNews specified that the drone strikes affected the Robi and Riwall resorts of Sidakan subdistrict, which the injured woman Sharmin was visiting. Rudaw News reported that the woman had been hit by shrapnel from a shell and that he injury was light.

All of the sources that reported on the incident attributed the injury to Turkish forces, referring to both airstrikes or drone strikes.

The incident occured at approximately 12:30 pm local time.

The victims were named as:

Sharmin Asad
30 years old female injured

Summary

  • Strike status
    Likely strike
  • Strike type
    Airstrike, Drone Strike
  • Civilian harm reported
    Yes
  • Civilians reported killed
    Unknown
  • Civilians reported injured
    1
  • Cause of injury / death
    Heavy weapons and explosive munitions
  • Airwars civilian harm grading
    Fair
    Reported by two or more credible sources, with likely or confirmed near actions by a belligerent.
  • Suspected attacker
    Turkish Military

Sources (5) [ collapse]

Media
from sources (2) [ collapse]

  • Alleged Turkish airstrikes on the Bradost area in northern Erbil province on October 16, 2022. (Image posted by Kurdistan24)

Turkish Military Assessment:

  • Suspected belligerent
    Turkish Military
  • Turkish Military position on incident
    Not yet assessed

Summary

  • Strike status
    Likely strike
  • Strike type
    Airstrike, Drone Strike
  • Civilian harm reported
    Yes
  • Civilians reported killed
    Unknown
  • Civilians reported injured
    1
  • Cause of injury / death
    Heavy weapons and explosive munitions
  • Airwars civilian harm grading
    Fair
    Reported by two or more credible sources, with likely or confirmed near actions by a belligerent.
  • Suspected attacker
    Turkish Military

Sources (5) [ collapse]

Incident Code

TS591

Incident date

April 24, 2023

Location

عين العبد, Ain Al Abd, Al Hasakah, Syria

Geolocation

36.716568, 40.445092 Note: The accuracy of this location is to Village level. Continue to map

Airwars assessment

Two young girls and a boy were killed and two other children were injured, all of which were from the same family, by alleged Turkish shelling of the village of Ain al-Abd on April 24, 2023.

Hawar News reported that two young sisters were killed and two young brothers and a sister were injured by intense Turkish shelling of the village of Ain al-Abd at 18:00. Hawar added that the injured were taken to Martyr Legrin Hospital in Tal Tamr for treatment.

Hawar News also provided the names of the children killed and injured: Maryam Khader Aweys (10 years old) and Etidal Aweys (9 years old) were both killed, Abdul Aziz, Diaa and Zahra Khader Aweys were injured.

Just hours later, Hawar News reported that one of the children, Abdul Aziz age 8, died from the severe injuries he sustained in the shelling.

Journalist Abbas Abbas reported that the bombing also resulted in extensive damage to property, and fear among civilians living in the affected areas.

All of the sources attributed the shelling to Turkey.

The incident occured at 18:00:00 local time.

The victims were named as:

Family members (5)

Maryam Khader Aweys
10 years old female killed
Etidal Aweys
9 years old female killed
Abdul Aziz Aweys
8 years old killed
Diaa Aweys
6 years old injured
Zahra Khader Aweys
14 years old injured

Summary

  • Strike status
    Likely strike
  • Strike type
    Artillery
  • Civilian harm reported
    Yes
  • Civilians reported killed
    3
  • (3 children)
  • Civilians reported injured
    2
  • Cause of injury / death
    Heavy weapons and explosive munitions
  • Airwars civilian harm grading
    Fair
    Reported by two or more credible sources, with likely or confirmed near actions by a belligerent.
  • Suspected attacker
    Turkish Military

Sources (9) [ collapse]

Media
from sources (2) [ collapse]

  • This media contains graphic content. Click to unblur.

    Graphic images of the children injured by alleged Turkish shelling of he village of Ain al-Abd on April 24, 2023. (Image posted by Hawar News)
  • This media contains graphic content. Click to unblur.

    Graphic images of the children killed and injured by alleged Turkish shelling of he village of Ain al-Abd on April 24, 2023. (Image posted by Hawar News)

Geolocation notes

Reports of the incident mention the village of Ain Al Abd (عين العبد), for which the generic coordinates are: 36.716568, 40.445092. Due to limited satellite imagery and information available to Airwars, we were unable to verify the location further.

Turkish Military Assessment:

  • Suspected belligerent
    Turkish Military
  • Turkish Military position on incident
    Not yet assessed

Summary

  • Strike status
    Likely strike
  • Strike type
    Artillery
  • Civilian harm reported
    Yes
  • Civilians reported killed
    3
  • (3 children)
  • Civilians reported injured
    2
  • Cause of injury / death
    Heavy weapons and explosive munitions
  • Airwars civilian harm grading
    Fair
    Reported by two or more credible sources, with likely or confirmed near actions by a belligerent.
  • Suspected attacker
    Turkish Military

Sources (9) [ collapse]

Incident Code

TS621

Incident date

August 8, 2023

Location

قرية الشركة, Al-Shirka village, Raqqa, Syria

Airwars assessment

On 8 August 2023, a woman and two children were killed, and three others, two children and their mother, all from the same family, were reportedly injured by Turkish shelling on their house in the village of Al-Shirka located in the eastern countryside of Ain Issa.

According to ANF, 60 year-old grandmother Doza, 10 year old Heba and 3 year-old Abdullah from the Ismail al–Hadi al-Khalawi family were killed. Whilst, 12-year old Malak, 5 year-old Tahani and their mother 25 year-old Haya Omar were reportedly transferred to hospitals in Raqqa with injuries.

Hawar News added that the bombardment occurred in the village of Al-Shirka south of the M4 international road.

This version of events was reported by a series of sources including the Fox Press, the Syrian Observatory of Human Rights, Hawarnews and local facebook posts, all conforming to the narrative provided by ANF.

The local time of the incident is unknown.

The victims were named as:

Family members (6)

Doza
60 years old female from Ismail al-Hadi al-Khalawi family killed
Heba al-Khalawi
10 years old from Ismail al-Hadi al-Khalawi family killed
Abdullah
3 years old from Ismail al-Hadi al-Khalawi family killed
Malak
12 years old from Ismail al-Hadi al-Khalawi family injured
Tahani
5 years old from Ismail al-Hadi al-Khalawi family injured
Haya Omar
25 years old female from Ismail al-Hadi al-Khalawi family injured

Summary

  • Strike status
    Likely strike
  • Strike type
    Artillery
  • Civilian harm reported
    Yes
  • Civilians reported killed
    3
  • (2 children1 woman)
  • Civilians reported injured
    3
  • Cause of injury / death
    Heavy weapons and explosive munitions
  • Airwars civilian harm grading
    Fair
    Reported by two or more credible sources, with likely or confirmed near actions by a belligerent.
  • Suspected attacker
    Turkish Military

Sources (9) [ collapse]

Media
from sources (2) [ collapse]

  • 3 citizens were killed and 3 others from one family were wounded; as a result of the Turkish bombardment of their village, Al-Shirka, in the eastern countryside of Ain Issa.
  • Blood from the victims of the alleged Turkish shelling on August 8, 2023. (Image posted by Hawar News)

Turkish Military Assessment:

  • Suspected belligerent
    Turkish Military
  • Turkish Military position on incident
    Not yet assessed

Summary

  • Strike status
    Likely strike
  • Strike type
    Artillery
  • Civilian harm reported
    Yes
  • Civilians reported killed
    3
  • (2 children1 woman)
  • Civilians reported injured
    3
  • Cause of injury / death
    Heavy weapons and explosive munitions
  • Airwars civilian harm grading
    Fair
    Reported by two or more credible sources, with likely or confirmed near actions by a belligerent.
  • Suspected attacker
    Turkish Military

Sources (9) [ collapse]

Incident Code

TS656

Incident date

October 30, 2023

Location

التوخار, Tokhar village, northern countryside of Manbij, Aleppo countryside, Aleppo, Syria

Airwars assessment

On Monday, October 30, 2023, an alleged strike by a Turkish military drone reportedly injured a civilian in the village of Tokhar, in the northern countryside of Manbij, close to Aleppo. According to the North Press Agency, the civilian injured in the attack is a 40-year-old man called Saleh Al-Jassem.

The incident was initially reported via a Facebook post by the Media Center of the Manbij Military Council. Details about the severity of Saleh Al-Jassem’s injuries or material damage have not been reported at the time of writing.

Where sources identified the belligerent, all sources attributed the strike to the Turkish military.

The local time of the incident is unknown.

The victims were named as:

Saleh Al-Jassem. صالح الجاسم
40 years old male injured

Summary

  • Strike status
    Likely strike
  • Strike type
    Airstrike, Drone Strike
  • Civilian harm reported
    Yes
  • Civilians reported killed
    Unknown
  • Civilians reported injured
    1
  • Cause of injury / death
    Heavy weapons and explosive munitions
  • Airwars civilian harm grading
    Fair
    Reported by two or more credible sources, with likely or confirmed near actions by a belligerent.
  • Suspected attacker
    Turkish Military

Sources (8) [ collapse]

Media
from sources (1) [ collapse]

  • This media contains graphic content. Click to unblur.

    Source: Hawar News

Turkish Military Assessment:

  • Suspected belligerent
    Turkish Military
  • Turkish Military position on incident
    Not yet assessed

Summary

  • Strike status
    Likely strike
  • Strike type
    Airstrike, Drone Strike
  • Civilian harm reported
    Yes
  • Civilians reported killed
    Unknown
  • Civilians reported injured
    1
  • Cause of injury / death
    Heavy weapons and explosive munitions
  • Airwars civilian harm grading
    Fair
    Reported by two or more credible sources, with likely or confirmed near actions by a belligerent.
  • Suspected attacker
    Turkish Military

Sources (8) [ collapse]