Pentagon: 45 civilians killed by coalition strikes

BAGHDAD — Investigations conducted during the month of March reveal that U.S.-led coalition airstrikes targeting the Islamic State group in Iraq and Syria killed 45 civilians, mostly in and around the Iraqi city of Mosul, according to a Pentagon statement released Sunday.

In each incident, the Pentagon said “all feasible precautions were taken,” but the strikes still resulted in “unintentional” loss of civilian life.

The report did not include findings from an ongoing investigation into a March 17 strike targeting Islamic State group fighters in Mosul. That strike resulted in more than 100 civilian deaths, according to reports from residents.

Last month, the United States acknowledged coalition planes conducted a strike “at the location corresponding to allegations of civilian casualties,” but did not confirm the reports of high civilian casualties.

Coalition officials have declined to give a time frame as to when the investigation into the incident will be complete.

The Pentagon acknowledged at least 352 civilians have been killed by coalition strikes in Iraq and Syria since the start of the air campaign against ISIL in 2014. Activists and monitoring groups put the number much higher. The Londonbased monitoring group Airwars reported that coalition strikes have killed more than 3,000 civilians in Iraq and Syria since 2014.

The March 17 strike sparked outrage in Iraq and beyond with calls from local government officials as well as the United Nations for greater restraint in the fight for Mosul. The United Nations reported nearly 2,000 civilians have been treated for trauma since the fight for western Mosul began.