Family of 6, including child, wounded in US strike in Syria [View all]
Source: Gettysburg Times
A U.S. airstrike targeting an al-Qaida leader in northern Syria wounded a family of six, including a 10-year-old child who suffered serious head injuries, The Associated Press has learned. Ahmad Qassim had picked up his family from his in-laws in northwestern Syria where they had spent four days and was driving back home Friday morning when an explosion occurred, riddling their vehicle with shrapnel.
Qassim, a 52-year-old farmer, his wife, two sons and two daughters suffered various wounds in the blast apparently caused by a missile fired from a U.S. drone. The drone was targeting a man on a motorcycle that Qassim was trying to overtake, according to Qassim and first responders. The blast occurred near the northwestern village of Mastoumeh as the family drove back home to the northern town of Afrin.
The U.S. military says it conducted a strike from a remotely piloted MQ-9 aircraft Friday near the city of Idlib targeting “a senior al-Qaeda leader and planner.” An initial review of this strike indicates the potential for possible civilian casualties, it added.
“We abhor the loss of innocent life and take all possible measures to prevent them. The possibility of a civilian casualty was immediately self-reported to U.S. Central Command,” said Capt. Bill Urban, CENTCOM spokesperson. He added: “We are initiating a full investigation of the allegations and will release the results when appropriate.”
Read more: https://www.gettysburgtimes.com/news/national/article_b9388486-7410-59f4-86fa-68b6e84105fa.html
News of the civilian casualties comes days after U.S. Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin appointed a four-star general to investigate a deadly March 2019 strike in Syria that caused civilian casualties, including women and children.
The New York Times reported earlier this month that the strike in Baghouz killed up to 64 women and children.
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