U.S. airstrike kills nearly 60 Syrian civilians after mistaking them for ISIS fighters

More than 60 Syrian civilians were reportedly killed Tuesday by a U.S. airstrike, The Telegraph reports. The victims, including children as young as 3 years old, were trying to flee an Islamic State-controlled region of northern Syria, and comprised roughly eight families. The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said that the U.S. likely carried out the airstrikes in error after mistaking the civilians for militants.

The city of Manbij is an ISIS stronghold where more than 450 airstrikes have taken place since the U.S.-led coalition against ISIS began attacks there in May. While retaking the city from the Islamic State would be a major victory, ISIS militants are reportedly using thousands of civilians in the city as "human shields" to protect themselves.

In a separate attack carried out Sunday, the U.S.-led coalition also reportedly killed six civilians, "including a woman with four of her children and an old man."

Subscribe to The Week

Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

SUBSCRIBE & SAVE

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.

Sign up

Update July 20: An earlier version of this article reflected initial reports that 85 civilians had been killed in the airstrike. This post has been updated to reflect the new estimate.