Civilian deaths rise with U.S. role in Iraq
An effort to speed up the U.S.-led offensive to retake Mosul is causing increased civilian deaths, Iraqi officials say, as residents are caught between Islamic State fighters and coalition airstrikes.
MOSUL, Iraq — Scores of Iraqi civilians, some of them still alive and calling out for help, were buried for days under the rubble of their homes in west Mosul after U.S.-led airstrikes flattened almost an entire city block.
At the site on Sunday, more than a week after the bombing runs, reporters for the New York Times saw weary survivors trying to find bodies in the wreckage. Iraqi officials said the final death toll could reach 200 killed, or even more. That would make it one of the worst instances of civilian casualties from an attack by U.S.-led forces during the long American military presence in Iraq.
Dangerous phase
The pace of fighting against the Islamic State here has grown more urgent, with Iraqi officers saying the U.S.-led coalition has been quicker to strike at urban targets from the air with less time to weigh the risks for civilians. They say the change is a reflection of a renewed push by the U.S. military under the Trump administration to speed up the battle for Mosul.
That push is coming at the moment that the battle for Mosul is nearing its most dangerous phase for civilians, with the fight reaching into the twisting alleys and densely populated areas of the old city. That is where hundreds of thousands of civilians are pinned down in tight quarters with Islamic State fighters who do not care if they live or die.
At the same time, more U.S. Special Operations troops are closer to the front lines. That way, in theory, the targeting of Islamic State fighters should become more precise for the coalition.
The Iraqi officers, by and large, welcome the change, saying that under the Obama administration coalition officers were too risk averse. Iraqis also say fighting for the dense, urban spaces of western Mosul requires more air power, even if that means more civilians will die.
The U.S.-led coalition has insisted that there have been no changes to its rules of engagement. Commanders say they are doing everything they can to protect civilian lives while pushing the fight in Mosul.
More U.S. troops sent
Also Monday, the Pentagon announced that the U.S. is sending more than 200 additional soldiers to Iraq to support the Iraqi military’s push to retake western Mosul from the Islamic State, military officials said Monday.
The deployment includes two Army infantry companies and one platoon equipped to clear away roadside bombs. The soldiers are expected to leave for Iraq within the next 36 hours.
The troops, about 240 soldiers in all, are from the 82nd Airborne Division at Fort Bragg, N.C., and will reinforce the more than 5,000 troops that the U.S. already has in Iraq.
The troops’ mission is not to engage in direct front-line combat, but the operation will put them in dangerous areas. The infantry companies, military officials said, will protect the continuing U.S. effort to advise and assist Iraqi forces as they push into western Mosul.
The mission of the “route clearance” platoon is inherently risky, as it involves sweeping away roadside bombs.