The US military has concealed dozens of deadly airstrikes in Syria: Report | ISIL / ISIS News

According to the New York Times investigation, 64 women and children could be killed in the March 2019 airstrikes.

The U.S. military covered up 2019 airstrikes in Syria, killing 64 women and children, a potential war crime in the fight against ISIL, the New York Times reported on Saturday.

The two airstrikes near the town of Baghuz were ordered by a U.S. classified special operations unit in charge of conducting ground operations in Syria, he said. report.

The newspaper said the U.S. Central Command, which oversaw air operations in Syria, has admitted the attacks for the first time this week and said they are justified.

In a statement issued on Saturday, the Central Command reported to the newspaper that the attack had killed 80 people, including 16 ISIL fighters and four civilians. According to the military, it is not clear whether the other 60 civilians were civilians, including women and children who may have been fighters.

In a statement on Saturday, the military said the attacks were “legitimate self-defense”, proportionate, and that “appropriate measures were taken to rule out the presence of civilians.”

“We hate the loss of innocent lives and we take all measures to prevent them. In this case, we reported and investigated the strike ourselves based on our own evidence, and we took full responsibility for the unwanted loss of life, ”the Central Command said.

The number of civilians among the 60 dead could not be determined because they saw “many armed women and at least one armed child” in the video of the events, and said most of the 60 were fighters.

The Central Command said the attacks by the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) – which were fighting ISIL – were on fire and at risk of overtaking and the SDF reported that the area was clear of civilians.

The U.S. Department of Defense chief inspector launched an investigation into the March 18, 2019 incident, but his report eventually “could not” mention the bombing and no deep, independent probe was ever conducted, according to the Times.

The newspaper said its report was based on confidential documents and descriptions of classified reports, as well as interviews with employees directly involved.

An air force lawyer at the center of the operation at the time believed the attacks could be war crimes and then warned the inspector general of the Department of Defense and the Senate Armed Services Committee when they failed to take action, the Times said.