Welcome to DU!
The truly grassroots left-of-center political community where regular people, not algorithms, drive the discussions and set the standards.
Join the community:
Create a free account
Support DU (and get rid of ads!):
Become a Star Member
Latest Breaking News
General Discussion
The DU Lounge
All Forums
Issue Forums
Culture Forums
Alliance Forums
Region Forums
Support Forums
Help & Search
In shift, U.S. military says it is investigating credible civilian casualty reports in Iraq and Syri
Source: Washington Post
In shift, U.S. military says it is investigating credible civilian casualty reports in Iraq and Syria
By Dan Lamothe January 6 at 3:09 PM
The U.S. military is investigating credible reports of civilian casualties in its campaign against Islamic State militants, the Pentagon press secretary said Tuesday, a shift after months in which defense officials said they were aware of none.
Rear Adm. John Kirby disclosed the probes on Tuesday, telling reporters at the Pentagon that U.S. Central Command is leading the review. CENTCOM officials said they have investigated the credibility of 18 separate allegations of coalition airstrikes resulting in civilian casualties between Aug. 8 and Dec. 30, and determined 13 were not credible.
Five more remain under review, however, including two from late December determined to be credible. They began as “the direct result of our own internal review process” said Army Maj. Curtis J. Kellogg, a CENTCOM spokesman, in a statement. The review of the other three allegations are still in initial phases, he added.
While the military had previously acknowledged reviewing reports of civilian casualties in airstrikes in Iraq and Syria, the elevation of two of those incidents — one in Iraq and one in Syria — into formal investigations had not previously been disclosed.
[font size=1]-snip-[/font]
By Dan Lamothe January 6 at 3:09 PM
The U.S. military is investigating credible reports of civilian casualties in its campaign against Islamic State militants, the Pentagon press secretary said Tuesday, a shift after months in which defense officials said they were aware of none.
Rear Adm. John Kirby disclosed the probes on Tuesday, telling reporters at the Pentagon that U.S. Central Command is leading the review. CENTCOM officials said they have investigated the credibility of 18 separate allegations of coalition airstrikes resulting in civilian casualties between Aug. 8 and Dec. 30, and determined 13 were not credible.
Five more remain under review, however, including two from late December determined to be credible. They began as “the direct result of our own internal review process” said Army Maj. Curtis J. Kellogg, a CENTCOM spokesman, in a statement. The review of the other three allegations are still in initial phases, he added.
While the military had previously acknowledged reviewing reports of civilian casualties in airstrikes in Iraq and Syria, the elevation of two of those incidents — one in Iraq and one in Syria — into formal investigations had not previously been disclosed.
[font size=1]-snip-[/font]
Read more: http://www.washingtonpost.com/news/checkpoint/wp/2015/01/06/in-shift-pentagon-says-civilian-casualties-possible-in-islamic-state-campaign/
