Led Coalition Airstrikes Kill 15 in Syria

Additional reports put the toll upwards of 80 killed.

U.S. and coalition airstrikes against the northern Syrian villages of Tokhar and Hoshariyeh have killed at least 56 civilians, including 11 children, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.

Daesh militants have staged counterattacks, but the Syrian rebels have maintained momentum with the help of air strikes by the USA -led coalition, the statement said.

Progress into the city has been slow with the militants deploying snipers, planting mines and preventing civilians from leaving, hampering efforts to bomb the city without causing large casualties, Kurdish sources said.

Investigative journalist Chris Woods, who founded the Airwars website, told MEE that his “entire website” was founded exclusively to highlight the discrepeancy between what the USA coalition and Russians say about civilian casaulties, and the reality. “We’ve never seen anything like this”.

“We take all measures during the targeting process to avoid or minimize civilian casualties or collateral damage and to comply with the principles of the Law of Armed Conflict”, said Allen. They have besieged the town and are advancing to the city centre under the cover of air strikes by the US-led coalition.

The Syria Democratic Forces (SDF), an alliance of Arab and Kurdish fighters backed by the United States, launched an offensive against ISIL to retake the city of Manbij late last month. The figure includes 29 children and 16 women.

Exactly what happened Tuesday remains unclear.

In an interview with the non-profit journalism outlet Syria Direct on Tuesday, a local citizen journalist said the school housed displaced people and that 124 dead had been counted so far.

However, he said the hospital will be returned to the civilians, after Manbij is fully recaptured.

The UN Commission on Human Rights warned Friday that 70,000 civilians were likely trapped in Manbij, where the global body believes the situation is “deteriorating dramatically as fighting continues between ISIL and the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) which is being supported by airstrikes”. The base has served as a key node in the US war against ISIS.

The Manbij area has seen intense battles between Daesh extremists and the Kurdish-led fighters who have been advancing under the cover of intense airstrikes by the USA -led coalition.

Postings on a Facebook page show images of bodies, including those of children, being placed in a collective grave, purportedly in the village of Tokhar.

U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) statements said the U.S. -led forces launched 11 strikes on July 17 and 18 strikes on July 18 against what it said were IS tactical units and fighting positions near Manbij.

SDF have worked for several weeks to liberate the building, which they hope to quickly return to civilian health-worker control. “There’s something very, very bad happening out there at the moment”. “This is the first big assault with a USA -backed proxy”, he said.

“Major alarm bells are ringing for us right now”, Woods added.