A Reckless Disregard for Civilian Lives: Russian airstrikes in Syria
Our analysis of Russian airstrikes in Syria between September 30th and December 31st 2015 found that despite Moscow’s continuing assertions that no civilians have been killed in its ongoing Syrian air war, there were credible indications from open source reporting that to December 31st 2015 only, between 1,098 and 1,450 non-combatants had likely died in
Netherlands airstrikes in Syria: Towards improved transparency and public accountability
Our report submitted to the Dutch Parliament’s Foreign Affairs Committee argued that despite being an advanced democracy with membership both of the European Union and NATO, The Netherlands had also been one of the least transparent partners in the US-led Coalition against ISIS – a situation which has further deteriorated over time. “It is an
International airstrikes and civilian casualty claims in Iraq and Syria: November 2015
Major military developments November 2015 saw the greatest number of Coalition actions yet reported in the 16-month war, with 529 airstrikes in Iraq and 232 in Syria. Overall, a total of 5,638 air strikes had been carried out in Iraq, and 2,944 in Syria to the end of the month. The 13 allies had between
International airstrikes and civilian casualty claims in Iraq and Syria: October 2015
Major developments The US-led Coalition ended October 2015 having carried out 5,107 airstrikes in Iraq and 2,712 in Syria so far in its 14-month air war against Daesh. Some 28,578 bombs and missiles had been dropped by 13 allies. There were 22 reported incidents of concern in October 2015 – ten in Syria and 13
International airstrikes and civilian casualty claims in Iraq and Syria: September 2015
Major developments US-led Coalition strikes allegedly killed as many as 276 civilians in up to 25 problem events in Iraq and Syria in September 2015 In twelve of these events, there appears enough credible evidence – coupled with confirmation of allied airstrikes in the vicinity – to suggest that a minimum of 86 civilians were
Coalition strikes and civilian casualty claims in Iraq and Syria: August 2015
Major Developments 6.548 Coalition airstrikes had been carried out to the end of August 2015 according to an Airwars count. Of these, 62% targeted Daesh in Iraq (4,080 strikes) with 2,468 airstrikes in Syria In total, Coalition aircraft had dropped 22,478 bombs and missiles on Iraq and Syria to August 31st Airwars recorded 12 new alleged civilian
Cause for Concern – Hundreds of civilian non-combatants credibly reported killed in first year of Coalition airstrikes against Islamic State
Our first major report challenged claims by the US-led Coalition’s airstrikes against so-called Islamic State were not harming civilians. As we noted at the time, “Efforts to limit the risk to civilians on the ground continue to be hampered by an absence of effective transparency and accountability from almost all Coalition members. It is unacceptable
Coalition strikes and civilian casualty claims in Iraq and Syria: July 10th-24th 2015
ABOVE: General Martin Dempsey, Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, takes questions during a ‘town hall’ session in Baghdad July 18th (US Army/ Spc. Tristan D. Bolden) Additional reporting by Basile Simon, Kinda Haddad and Latif Habib Major Developments In the two weeks since our last report, the Coalition has carried out 246 new airstrikes in
Coalition strikes and civilian casualty claims in Iraq and Syria: July 3rd-10th 2015
ABOVE: Burnt out wreckage of a car carrying seven alleged Al Nusra Front members, destroyed in a US targeted strike in Syria July 8 2015 (via SNN) Additional reporting by Basile Simon, Kinda Haddad and Latif Habib. Major Developments Casualty recorders publish the name of a 200th alleged victim of coalition airstrikes in Syria. In Iraq,
Coalition airstrikes and reported casualties in Iraq and Syria: June 26th – July 3rd 2015
ABOVE: A bomb-laden Belgian F-16 prepares for a mission in Iraq, December 2014 (Belgian MoD) Major Developments Belgium announces it has ended its military role in the coalition, withdrawing its F-16s after approximately 41 airstrikes 13 fresh problem events are reported for June in both Iraq and Syria, involving multiple civilian deaths allegedly caused by
Coalition airstrikes and reported casualties in Iraq and Syria: June 19th-26th 2015
ABOVE: Delegates at the 29th session of the United Nations Human Rights Council in Geneva, June 22 2015, heard calls for coalition members to promptly investigate reports of civilian casualties (UN) Major Developments The coalition ends its 46th week of bombings having carried out 141 airstrikes on Islamic State. New UN report calls on international coalition
Coalition airstrikes and reported casualties in Iraq and Syria: June 12th-19th 2015
ABOVE: Residents of Tal Abyad region flee the fighting between Islamic State and YPG Kurds, June 2015 (SNN) Major Developments Coalition ends 45th week of bombings having carried out 4,673 airstrikes on Islamic State At least 6 and as many as 20 civilians were reported killed in a series of coalition airstrikes on June 13th, in support of
Coalition airstrikes and casualties in Iraq and Syria: June 5th-June 12th 2015
ABOVE: Dutch MPs visit an Air Task Force facility, June 5 2015 (Dutch MoD) Major Developments New figures show coalition has now dropped more than 15,000 bombs and missiles on Iraq and Syria, in more than 4,500 airstrikes There were four new incidents reported in which it was claimed coalition aircraft may have caused civilian or
Coalition airstrikes and casualties in Iraq and Syria: May 29th-June 5th 2015
ABOVE: Scene of devastation at the town of al Hawijah near Kirkuk, Iraq after a US airstrike destroyed a Daesh IED factory Major Developments In single greatest claim of coalition-inflicted civilian deaths since August, up to 70 non-combatants are reported killed in an airstrike on Iraqi town of al-Hawijah Coalition denies it has seen evidence
Coalition airstrikes and casualties in Iraq and Syria: May 22nd-29th 2015
ABOVE: Aftermath of a devastating explosion in Mosul May 21st 2015 which killed between 12-50 civilians according to reports (via Mosul Ateka) Major Developments Two new civilian casualty incidents are reported for the past week. The destruction of an ISIL arms dump in Mosul is said to kill 12-50 non-combatants. And in Syria, up to 10 female agricultural
Coalition airstrikes and casualties in Iraq and Syria: May 15th-May 22nd 2015
Major developments After nine months of strikes the coalition finally admits its actions have killed civilians – confirming the “likely” death of at least two children in Syria A last-minute spate of Coalition airstrikes fails to prevent Islamic State from over-running the crucial city of Ramadi in Iraq The 4,000th airstrike since operations began in August