US Airstrikes Kill 32 Civilians in Eastern Syria

Airstrikes pound one of the last ISIS towns in Deir Ezzor

US airstrikes against the town of Souseh, one of the last ISIS-held territories in Syria’s Deir Ezzor Province, killed at least 32 civilians, many of them women and children, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.

This is one of two towns still under ISIS control in eastern Syria, which have been targeted by an offensive by US and Kurdish forces. These are among the first major airstrikes hitting the town itself in the past 24 hours.

US officials have yet to comment on the matter, but it’s not hard to see how it could’ve happened, as they have struggled to show progress on the ground and are looking to provide more support for Kurdish forces trying to advance.

The problem is, intelligence on the ground in Syria is never very good, and that means the US really only knows it’s hitting a town that is under ISIS control, not that it is hitting combatants or civilians. Unfortunately, this never seems to deter US strikes.

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.