Demonstrators carry signs during an anti-war protest after President Donald Trump launched airstrikes in Syria, April 15, 2018 in New York City. (Photo: Kena Betancur/Getty Images)
At Least 28 Civilians Killed by US-Led Bombing of Ice Factory in Syria
"The coalition or our partner forces may have conducted" the airstrike, spokesperson says
The U.S. has admitted it may have been responsible for an airstrike in eastern Syrian that a war monitoring group says killed 28 civilians.
The bombing took place late Thursday in the eastern province of Deir al Zour, hitting near the villages of al Soussa and al Baghouz, according to Syrian state news agency SANA and the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR).
According to the U.K.-based Observatory, the civilians had sought shelter at an ice factory in the ISIS-held area.
SANA put the death toll at 30, adding that others were injured in the strike as well, and that the death toll could mount.
ISIS militants were also said to be among the dead, with the Observatory saying the total death toll was at least 54.
Coalition spokesman Col.Sean Ryan told Reuters, "The Coalition or our partner forces may have conducted strikes in the vicinity of al Soussa and Baghour Fukhani yesterday." He added in his email to the news agency that the report of civilian casualties had been forwarded to the "Civilian Casualty Cell for further assessment."
Transparency group Airwars says that "almost all coalition strikes in early 2018--and claims of civilian harm--were now focused on eastern Syria."
The latest strikes are part of the coalition's "Operation Roundup," which touts its "precision coalition strike support" as it targets the extremist group on the Iraq-Syria border along the middle Euphrates River Valley.
The coalition, Airwars notes, has carried out over 15,000 airstrikes in Syria since 2014.
Urgent. It's never been this bad.
Dear Common Dreams reader, It’s been nearly 30 years since I co-founded Common Dreams with my late wife, Lina Newhouser. We had the radical notion that journalism should serve the public good, not corporate profits. It was clear to us from the outset what it would take to build such a project. No paid advertisements. No corporate sponsors. No millionaire publisher telling us what to think or do. Many people said we wouldn't last a year, but we proved those doubters wrong. Together with a tremendous team of journalists and dedicated staff, we built an independent media outlet free from the constraints of profits and corporate control. Our mission from the outset was simple. To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. Building Common Dreams was not easy. Our survival was never guaranteed. When you take on the most powerful forces—Wall Street greed, fossil fuel industry destruction, Big Tech lobbyists, and uber-rich oligarchs who have spent billions upon billions rigging the economy and democracy in their favor—the only bulwark you have is supporters who believe in your work. But here’s the urgent message from me today. It’s never been this bad out there. And it’s never been this hard to keep us going. At the very moment Common Dreams is most needed and doing some of its best and most important work, the threats we face are intensifying. Right now, with just three days to go in our Spring Campaign, we're falling short of our make-or-break goal. When everyone does the little they can afford, we are strong. But if that support retreats or dries up, so do we. Can you make a gift right now to make sure Common Dreams not only survives but thrives? There is no backup plan or rainy day fund. There is only you. —Craig Brown, Co-founder |
The U.S. has admitted it may have been responsible for an airstrike in eastern Syrian that a war monitoring group says killed 28 civilians.
The bombing took place late Thursday in the eastern province of Deir al Zour, hitting near the villages of al Soussa and al Baghouz, according to Syrian state news agency SANA and the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR).
According to the U.K.-based Observatory, the civilians had sought shelter at an ice factory in the ISIS-held area.
SANA put the death toll at 30, adding that others were injured in the strike as well, and that the death toll could mount.
ISIS militants were also said to be among the dead, with the Observatory saying the total death toll was at least 54.
Coalition spokesman Col.Sean Ryan told Reuters, "The Coalition or our partner forces may have conducted strikes in the vicinity of al Soussa and Baghour Fukhani yesterday." He added in his email to the news agency that the report of civilian casualties had been forwarded to the "Civilian Casualty Cell for further assessment."
Transparency group Airwars says that "almost all coalition strikes in early 2018--and claims of civilian harm--were now focused on eastern Syria."
The latest strikes are part of the coalition's "Operation Roundup," which touts its "precision coalition strike support" as it targets the extremist group on the Iraq-Syria border along the middle Euphrates River Valley.
The coalition, Airwars notes, has carried out over 15,000 airstrikes in Syria since 2014.
The U.S. has admitted it may have been responsible for an airstrike in eastern Syrian that a war monitoring group says killed 28 civilians.
The bombing took place late Thursday in the eastern province of Deir al Zour, hitting near the villages of al Soussa and al Baghouz, according to Syrian state news agency SANA and the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR).
According to the U.K.-based Observatory, the civilians had sought shelter at an ice factory in the ISIS-held area.
SANA put the death toll at 30, adding that others were injured in the strike as well, and that the death toll could mount.
ISIS militants were also said to be among the dead, with the Observatory saying the total death toll was at least 54.
Coalition spokesman Col.Sean Ryan told Reuters, "The Coalition or our partner forces may have conducted strikes in the vicinity of al Soussa and Baghour Fukhani yesterday." He added in his email to the news agency that the report of civilian casualties had been forwarded to the "Civilian Casualty Cell for further assessment."
Transparency group Airwars says that "almost all coalition strikes in early 2018--and claims of civilian harm--were now focused on eastern Syria."
The latest strikes are part of the coalition's "Operation Roundup," which touts its "precision coalition strike support" as it targets the extremist group on the Iraq-Syria border along the middle Euphrates River Valley.
The coalition, Airwars notes, has carried out over 15,000 airstrikes in Syria since 2014.