US airstrike targeting al-Qaida leader in Syria killed a farmer, American military says

The U.S. subject said an airstrike successful Syria successful May 2023 that was targeting an al-Qaida person killed an guiltless civilian instead

WASHINGTON -- A U.S. airstrike successful Syria successful May 2023 that was targeting an al-Qaida person killed an guiltless civilian instead, U.S. Central Command said Thursday, confirming aboriginal reports from residents and household members soon aft the attack.

U.S. Central Command said an probe into the May 3 onslaught concluded that U.S. forces misidentified the intended al-Qaida people “and that a civilian, Mr. Lufti Hasan Masto, was struck and killed.”

Shortly aft the drone strike, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, an absorption warfare monitor, said it had deed a chickenhearted workplace adjacent the municipality of Harem, sidesplitting 1 person. And conscionable days later, relatives and neighbors told The Associated Press that the idiosyncratic killed was a husbandman who raised sheep, chickens and cattle and had nary engagement with equipped groups.

Masto’s brother, Mohamed Masto, said reports that his brother, 60, was progressive with al-Qaida were “absolute lies” and his sidesplitting was “an injustice and an aggression.” Instead, Masto was simply tending his sheep erstwhile the onslaught hit.

Central Command said the probe into the onslaught was completed past November — but it wasn't released publically until Thursday.

In a statement, Central Command said overmuch of the probe and findings are classified but acknowledged it revealed “several issues that could beryllium improved.”

“What we tin stock is the probe concluded the onslaught was conducted successful compliance with the instrumentality of equipped struggle arsenic good arsenic Department of Defense and CENTCOM policies,” the connection said. “We are committed to learning from this incidental and improving our targeting processes to mitigate imaginable civilian harm.”

The Defense Department has travel nether occurrence implicit the people of the wars successful Iraq, Afghanistan and Syria for sidesplitting civilians successful airstrikes. It acceptable up a elaborate probe and reappraisal process for strikes erstwhile determination are allegations of guiltless radical being killed.

The U.S. besides continues to people al-Qaida and Islamic State leaders successful Syria, including the 2017 airstrike that killed Abu al-Kheir al-Masri, a erstwhile adjutant to Osama bin Laden and al-Qaida’s 2nd successful bid successful Syria.