UN Report Links US, Russia, and Syria to War Crimes

US not avoiding 'indiscriminate' attacks on civilians

A new report from UN investigators in Syria has singled out the United States, Russia, and the Syrian government as nations which may have committed war crimes in Syria, in the course of killing and wounding civilians.

The report was deeply critical of all three nations in their carrying out of airstrikes in Syria, with Syria and Russia faulted for apparent targeting of civilian targets in Idlib and Aleppo Provinces.

This has all been well documented, with strikes hitting hospitals, schools, and marketplaces in trying to soften up the areas they intend to capture in a ground offensive. The report says the US largely did the same thing.

US strikes were further east, where Kurdish forces were seizing cities from ISIS. The UN Commission found that there were “reasonable grounds to believe” that US and coalition forces had not directed forces against military targets, or at the very least failed to do so with any precautions, which led to the reckless deaths of a lot of civilians.

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.