NATO Abandons Denial, Admits to Libya Attack That Killed 15

NATO Warplanes Attacked Sorman After All

On Sunday, NATO copped to killing at least nine civilians in a strike in Central Tripoli, blaming a “weapons system failure,” but when a second incident in the suburb of Sorman came out the very next morning, they angrily denied involvement, saying warplanes weren’t even operating near the area.

But they were. NATO has now abandoned that denial and admits that they did attack the compound in Sorman, claiming it was a military “command and control” center. Media were taken to the site yesterday and shown the bodies of slain civilians, including children.

The Sorman attack killed at least 15 people according to officials, including three children. NATO said it was “aware” of the claim but had no way of verifying if it was true. Unlike Sunday’s killings, however, they offered no apology, and Canadian Gen. Bouchard, the commander of the war, vowed to continue to launch such attacks.

Which isn’t sitting well with Italian Foreign Minister Franco Frattini, who warned the killings of civilians was putting the alliance’s credibility at risk. NATO is nominally in Libya to “protect civilians” under a UN resolution authorizing a no-fly zone.

Author: Jason Ditz

Jason Ditz is Senior Editor for Antiwar.com. He has 20 years of experience in foreign policy research and his work has appeared in The American Conservative, Responsible Statecraft, Forbes, Toronto Star, Minneapolis Star-Tribune, Providence Journal, Washington Times, and the Detroit Free Press.