US Airstrikes Kill 11 Civilians in Eastern Syria

Death toll expected to rise with many badly wounded

After a few days in which weather problems were limited US airstrikes against eastern Syria, the Pentagon resumed its strikes against the town of al-Shufeh Friday, once again hitting civilian areas and killed non-combatants.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights is reporting that 11 civilians were killed in US strikes on Friday, including five children. This is a very preliminary toll, and it is expected to rise further, with many other civilians badly wounded in the attacks and not expected to survive.

The US strikes are centered on three towns near the Iraq border which are under ISIS control. These towns are being attacked by the Kurdish YPG, and the US is trying to provide air support, though in recent weeks the strikes have overwhelmingly killed civilians.

The Pentagon has once again not commented on the matter of the Friday attacks. The only time they did was to issue a blanket denial, but even then confirmed bombing the town in question at the time in question, insisting some unidentified other air force did a civilian killing.

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.