New York Times Says US Military Covered Two Attacks That Killed Syrian Civilians

United States military illustration (Pixabay)

JAKARTA - The United States military covered up two airstrikes in Syria in 2019 that killed up to 64 women and children in the fight against ISIS, the New York Times (NYT) reported on Saturday.

The two airstrikes were carried out in succession near the city of Baghuz on orders from a secret special operations unit serving in Syria, according to the newspaper.

According to the NYT, US Central Command, which oversees US air operations in Syria, acknowledged the attack for the first time this week and confirmed it.

In a statement on Saturday, carried by Antara, Central Command reiterated information provided to the NYT that 80 people died in the two attacks including 16 ISIS fighters and four civilians.

The command said it was not clear whether the other 60 victims were civilians, as women and children could have been fighters.

In the statement, the military said the attack was a "legitimate" self-defense measure, proportionate and that "appropriate steps were taken to exclude the presence of civilians".

"We despise the loss of innocent human life and are taking all possible measures to prevent it. In this case, we self-reported and investigated the attack based on the evidence we have and take full responsibility for the accidental loss of life", Central Command said.

The number of civilians among the 60 killed could not be confirmed as "many armed women and at least one armed child was observed" in the video of the incident, the military said, adding that the majority of the dead were likely fighters.

Central Command said the attack was carried out at a time when the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) were being heavily battered and threatened with defeat and the SDF had reported that the area was clear of civilians.

The Inspector-General of the Department of Defense investigated the events that occurred on March 18, 2019, but his report was later "cleared" of the word "bombing".

An independent and thorough investigation into the incident was never carried out, according to NYT.

The newspaper said the report was based on confidential documents and descriptions of the report, as well as interviews with officials directly involved.

An Air Force attorney who was at the operations center at the time believes the attack was a suspected war crime. He then alerted the inspector general of the US Department of Defense and the US Senate Armed Services Committee but no action was taken, the New York Times said.