Pentagon inquiry finds no fault in 2019 Syria strike that killed civilians
Internal investigation blamed Syrian Kurdish forces for failing to mention the presence of civilians when calling in US airstrike.
An internal Pentagon investigation into a March 2019 airstrike that killed several civilians during the final battle against the Islamic State in Syria found no violation of the military’s rules of engagement.
Instead, the inquiry blamed local Kurdish-led Syrian fighters for relaying faulty information while requesting US air support.
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The full report remains under wraps, but a declassified summary released by the Pentagon on Tuesday concluded that the US commander responsible for the strike was unaware that civilians were “within the blast radius” after receiving repeated confirmation from Kurdish forces that no noncombatants were present.
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The US commander “acted reasonably and within the bounds” of the rules of engagement and the law of war, and “demonstrated awareness and concern for [civilian casualties] and took steps to mitigate harm,” the memo concluded, without offering specifics.
