Casualty is first civilian death the MoD has admitted responsibility for since airstrikes in region began four years ago

This article is more than 1 year old

This article is more than 1 year old

An RAF drone strike killed a civilian in Syria last month, the first time the Ministry of Defence has admitted responsibility for the death of a non-combatant since beginning air attacks in the region almost four years ago.



According to the MoD, a Reaper drone armed with a Hellfire missile fired at three suspected Islamic State fighters on 26 March. Almost simultaneously, a civilian on a motorbike entered the target area and was killed too.

The defence secretary, Gavin Williamson, in a written statement to parliament described the fatality as “deeply regrettable”.

The MoD has faced scepticism over repeated claims that not a single airstrike out of 1,600 in Iraq, and latterly Syria, had resulted in any known civilian deaths since strikes began in September 2014. The decision to admit responsibility in this case follows a review of aerial footage and other evidence.

Williamson, in the written statement, said: “We do everything we can to minimise the risk to civilian life from UK strikes through our rigorous targeting processes and the professionalism of UK service personnel.

“It is, therefore, deeply regrettable that a UK airstrike on 26 March 2018, targeting Daesh [Isis] fighters in eastern Syria, resulted in an unintentional civilian fatality. During a strike to engage three Daesh fighters, a civilian motorbike crossed into the strike area at the last moment and it is assessed that one civilian was unintentionally killed.”

Williamson added: “We reached this conclusion after undertaking routine and detailed post-strike analysis of all available evidence.”



A separate review will be carried out by the US-led coalition of which the UK is a part. If the family of the dead man comes forward, they will be receive compensation.

The former defence secretary, Michael Fallon, was met with scepticism in 2015 when he told the BBC: “Our estimate is that there hasn’t yet been a single civilian casualty because of the precision of their strikes.”

Independent data at the time suggested the US-led coalition’s overall record of civilian casualties was roughly about 6%-8%.

The MoD later elaborated to say that while it could not state definitively that no civilian had been killed, no one had come forward until this latest incident with evidence of a single death attributable to an RAF strike.

The MOD says it uses precision weapons and there are elaborate checks before a strike is ordered, in order to avoid civilian casualties.

The use of drones is controversial, with repeated questions about their legality. As with strikes from planes, there are also questions about the accuracy of the intelligence on which attacks are based.

Chris Cole, who runs Drone Wars, a UK-based organisation that monitors their use, said that based on recent freedom of information requests there had been a dramatic increase in UK drone strikes in Syria in the first quarter of this year – 92 in total.

Cole said this was as many as the total number for the previous 18 months and more than those fired from RAF Tornado and Typhoon aircraft.

He also said the RAF had confirmed the use of the thermobaric version of the Hellfire missile, the first time it has publicly acknowledged using them in Syria. The MoD acknowledged in 2009 their use from helicopters in Afghanistan.

Human rights groups have criticised the use of thermobaric weapons, which create a pressure wave that sucks the air out of victims, rather than more traditional weapons that pierce armour or blast fragments over a wide area.

The MoD did not specify whether a thermobaric weapon had been used in this case.</s>An RAF drone strike against Islamic State forces in eastern Syria has "unintentionally" resulted in a civilian fatality, Defence Secretary Gavin Williamson has said.

In a statement, Mr Williamson confirmed that the "deeply regrettable" incident had occurred after the individual crossed into the strike area on a motorbike moments before the blast on 26th March.

It is the first time that the Ministry of Defence (MoD) has confirmed a civilian casualty during Britain's campaign against the terror group in Iraq and Syria.

Three IS fighters were also killed by the precision Hellfire missile as they drove in the Syrian Euphrates valley, the MoD reported.

The attack was carried out by an RAF Reaper drone, which had been tracking the trio.

The Defence Secretary has said that it was one of more than 1,600 air strikes carried out against IS targets by the RAF in Iraq and Syria.

"We do everything we can to minimise the risk to civilian life from UK strikes through our rigorous targeting processes and the professionalism of UK Service personnel.

"It is therefore deeply regrettable that a UK air strike on 26 March 2018, targeting Daesh fighters in eastern Syria, resulted in an unintentional civilian fatality.

"During a strike to engage three Daesh fighters, a civilian motorbike crossed into the strike area at the last moment and it is assessed that one civilian was unintentionally killed.

"We reached this conclusion after undertaking routine and detailed post-strike analysis of all available evidence."

An investigation will be carried out by the wider coalition, which will report "in due course", he added.

Britain's direct military involvement against Islamic State is limited to the skies, but troops on the ground have also been involved in training more than 60,000 members of the Iraqi security forces.

Intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance has also been provided to coalition partners, according to the Defence Secretary.

"These strikes are undertaken in the collective self-defence of Iraq as part of the global Coalition to defeat Daesh, and at the request of the Government of Iraq," he said.

"As a result of the Coalition's action, Daesh has lost more than 98 per cent of the territory it once occupied in Iraq and Syria, and 7.7 million people have been liberated from its rule."

He continued that such civilian deaths "remind us of the consequences of conflict and of the heavy price that the people of Syria have paid.

"It reminds us that when we undertake military action, we must do so knowing that it can never be completely without risk.

"Such incidents will not weaken our resolve to defeat Daesh and rid the world of its poisonous ideology of hate and intolerance.

"The UK's commitment to the Global Coalition against Daesh and to the people of Iraq and Syria will remain as strong as ever."</s>"We do everything we can to minimize the risk to civilian life from the UK strikes through our rigorous targeting processes and the professionalism of UK Service personnel. It is therefore deeply regrettable that a UK air strike on 26 March 2018, targeting Daesh fighters in eastern Syria, resulted in an unintentional civilian fatality," Defense Secretary Gavin Williamson said in a written statement to Parliament.

The civilian was killed as he crossed the area of the airstrike on a motorbike, the statement added.

READ MORE: Syria Attack: 'Nobody Looking for War, But Things Could Spiral Out of Control'

The United Kingdom is a member of an international coalition of more than 70 states, which has been conducting military operations against Daesh in Syria and Iraq since 2014. According to the UK Defense Ministry figures, the UK Royal Air Force has carried out over 1,600 airstrikes in Syria and Iraq so far.</s>A civilian was killed by a UK airstrike targeting Islamic State in Syria, the Ministry of Defence has confirmed for the first time.

Defence Secretary Gavin Williamson described the "unintentional civilian fatality" on 26 March as "deeply regrettable".

The RAF had targeted three IS fighters in eastern Syria when a civilian motorbike "crossed into the strike area at the last moment", he said.

It is the first time the MoD has confirmed a civilian casualty during Britain's campaign against the terror group in Iraq and Syria.

"These events serve to remind us of the consequences of conflict and of the heavy price that the people of Syria have paid," Mr Williamson said.

"It reminds us that when we undertake military action, we must do so knowing that it can never be completely without risk.

"Such incidents will not weaken our resolve to defeat Daesh and rid the world of its poisonous ideology of hate and intolerance."

The MoD said an RAF Reaper drone "tracked a group of terrorists in a vehicle in the Syrian Euphrates valley" and "successfully destroyed it and its occupants with a precision Hellfire missile attack".

It concluded that a civilian had been killed following "detailed post-strike analysis" of the airstrike, Mr Williamson said.

An investigation by the "wider Coalition" will report in due course, he added.</s>A Royal Air Force airstrike targeting three Islamic State fighters in Syria has killed a civilian on a motorbike who rode into the target zone, it emerged today.

The airstrike on March 26 'unintentionally' killed the civilian who crossed into the strike area 'at the last moment', Defence Secretary Gavin Williamson said.

It is the first time the Ministry of Defence has confirmed a civilian casualty during Britain's campaign against the terror group in Iraq and Syria.

Britain has carried out more than 1,600 air strikes in Iraq and Syria - and UK forces have trained 60,000 members of the Iraqi Security Force, Mr Williamson said.

An MoD statement on the attack from March 26 said: 'A Reaper tracked a group of terrorists in a vehicle in the Syrian Euphrates valley on Monday March 26, and successfully destroyed it and its occupants with a precision Hellfire missile attack.'

In January, it was revealed that RAF crews had taken out ISIS terrorists using drones for reconnaissance and bombing raids in Syria for the first time.

Last year military commanders claimed victory against ISIS in Iraq, but the US-led coalition is continuing the battle against the militants in Syria.

Mr Williamson said: 'We do everything we can to minimise the risk to civilian life from UK strikes through our rigorous targeting processes and the professionalism of UK Service personnel.

'It is therefore deeply regrettable that a UK air strike on March 26, 2018, targeting Daesh fighters in eastern Syria, resulted in an unintentional civilian fatality.

'During a strike to engage three Daesh fighters, a civilian motorbike crossed into the strike area at the last moment and it is assessed that one civilian was unintentionally killed.

'We reached this conclusion after undertaking routine and detailed post-strike analysis of all available evidence.'

He added that the wider coalition will carry out an investigation, but the UK's commitment to fighting against ISIS 'will remain as strong as ever'.

The confirmation comes one day after a source inside the coalition told the BBC that he believed civilians could have been killed by RAF airstrikes.

That claim brought into doubt a previous statement by the Ministry of Defence that it had seen 'no evidence' of its strikes in Iraq causing civilian casualties.

But the MoD confirmed today that the incident on March 26 saw the only civilian death caused by RAF strikes on ISIS in Iraq or Syria since they began.

Mr Williamson said: 'These events serve to remind us of the consequences of conflict and of the heavy price that the people of Syria have paid.

'It reminds us that when we undertake military action, we must do so knowing that it can never be completely without risk.

'Such incidents will not weaken our resolve to defeat Daesh and rid the world of its poisonous ideology of hate and intolerance.'</s>LONDON (AFP) - A British air strike on Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) militants in Syria unintentionally killed a civilian, London said on Wednesday (May 2), the first time it has confirmed a civilian death in the fight against ISIS.

The Royal Air Force (RAF) strike on three ISIS fighters in eastern Syria on March 26 also killed a motorcyclist who crossed into the area at the last minute, Defence Secretary Gavin Williamson said in a statement.

It comes a day after the BBC cited a source inside the coalition fighting the ISIS group, also known as Daesh, as saying he believed civilians had been killed in "several" RAF attacks.

"During a strike to engage three Daesh fighters, a civilian motorbike crossed into the strike area at the last moment and it is assessed that one civilian was unintentionally killed," Mr Williamson said.

"We reached this conclusion after undertaking routine and detailed post-strike analysis of all available evidence," he said.

A Ministry of Defence statement on March 26 had said of the attack that a Reaper remotely-controlled aircraft had tracked "a group of terrorists in a vehicle" in the Syrian Euphrates valley and "successfully destroyed it and its occupants with a precision Hellfire missile attack".

Wednesday's statement also gave details about Britain's involvement in the fight against IS.

The RAF has conducted more than 1,600 air strikes in Iraq and Syria - second only to coalition leaders the United States - said the statement.

It said Britain had nearly 1,400 military personnel in the region providing "support to local partners".

"British soldiers have trained over 60,000 members of the Iraqi Security Forces in engineering, medical, counter-IED and basic infantry skills," the statement said.</s>An RAF airstrike against three Islamic State fighters in eastern Syria on 26 March “unintentionally” killed a civilian, Gavin Williamson, the defence secretary, has said in a written ministerial statement.

It is the first time the Ministry of Defence has confirmed a civilian casualty during Britain’s campaign against the terror group in Iraq and Syria. The defence secretary said the RAF had conducted more than 1,600 airstrikes in Iraq and Syria.

“We do everything we can to minimise the risk to civilian life from UK strikes through our rigorous targeting processes and the professionalism of UK service personnel. It is therefore deeply regrettable that a UK airstrike on 26 March 2018, targeting Daesh [Isis] fighters in eastern Syria, resulted in an unintentional civilian fatality.

“During a strike to engage three Daesh fighters, a civilian motorbike crossed into the strike area at the last moment and it is assessed that one civilian was unintentionally killed.”</s>An RAF drone strike against Islamic State forces in eastern Syria has "unintentionally" resulted in a civilian fatality, Defence Secretary Gavin Williamson has said.

In a statement, Mr Williamson confirmed that the "deeply regrettable" incident had occurred after the individual crossed into the strike area on a motorbike moments before the blast on 26th March.

It is the first time that the Ministry of Defence (MoD) has confirmed a civilian casualty during Britain's campaign against the terror group in Iraq and Syria.

Three IS fighters were also killed by the precision Hellfire missile as they drove in the Syrian Euphrates valley, the MoD reported.

The attack was carried out by an RAF Reaper drone, which had been tracking the trio.

The Defence Secretary has said that it was one of more than 1,600 air strikes carried out against IS targets by the RAF in Iraq and Syria.</s>An RAF airstrike against three Islamic State fighters in eastern Syria on March 26 "unintentionally" killed a civilian, Defence Secretary Gavin Williamson has said in a written ministerial statement.

He said it is "deeply regrettable" that the strike targeting Daesh fighters resulted in a civilian fatality.

The defence secretary explained that a motorbike crossed into the strike area "at the last moment".

It is the first time the Ministry of Defence (MoD) has confirmed a civilian casualty during Britain's campaign against the terror group in Iraq and Syria.

Three IS fighters, who were driving in the Syrian Euphrates valley at the time, were also killed by the precision Hellfire missile, a statement from the MoD at the time reported.

The attack was carried out by an RAF Reaper drone, which had tracked the trio.

It was one of more than 1,600 air strikes carried out against IS targets by the RAF in Iraq and Syria, Mr Williamson said.

"As part of our counter-terrorism strategy, the UK is playing a leading role in the Global Coalition to defeat Daesh - a unified body of 75 members," the statement said.

"We have committed nearly 1,400 military personnel to the region to provide support to local partners.

"In the air, the RAF has conducted more than 1,600 air strikes in Iraq and Syria - second only to the US - and provides highly advanced intelligence, surveillance and reconnaissance to Coalition partners.

"These strikes are undertaken in the collective self-defence of Iraq as part of the global Coalition to defeat Daesh, and at the request of the Government of Iraq.

"On the ground, British soldiers have trained over 60,000 members of the Iraqi Security Forces in engineering, medical, counter-IED and basic infantry skills.

"As a result of the Coalition's action, Daesh has lost more than 98% of the territory it once occupied in Iraq and Syria, and 7.7 million people have been liberated from its rule."

The defence secretary continued: "We do everything we can to minimise the risk to civilian life from UK strikes through our rigorous targeting processes and the professionalism of UK Service personnel.

"It is therefore deeply regrettable that a UK air strike on 26 March 2018, targeting Daesh fighters in eastern Syria, resulted in an unintentional civilian fatality.

"During a strike to engage three Daesh fighters, a civilian motorbike crossed into the strike area at the last moment and it is assessed that one civilian was unintentionally killed.

"We reached this conclusion after undertaking routine and detailed post-strike analysis of all available evidence."

He said there are limits on any further details being released "given ongoing operations and consequent national security issues".

"As with any serious incident the wider coalition also conducts its own investigation and will report in due course," he added.

"These events serve to remind us of the consequences of conflict and of the heavy price that the people of Syria have paid. It reminds us that when we undertake military action, we must do so knowing that it can never be completely without risk.

"Such incidents will not weaken our resolve to defeat Daesh and rid the world of its poisonous ideology of hate and intolerance.

"The UK's commitment to the Global Coalition against Daesh and to the people of Iraq and Syria will remain as strong as ever."</s>An RAF strike on the Islamic State group has caused a civilian casualty, the Ministry of Defence has admitted for the first time.

It says a Reaper drone fired on an IS vehicle in eastern Syria on 26 March this year, "unintentionally" killing a civilian on a motorbike when he crossed the target area at the last minute.

Defence Secretary Gavin Williamson said the incident was "deeply regrettable".

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The MoD says it has done "everything possible" to minimise the risk to civilians.

The UK is second to the US in the number of airstrikes it conducted for a coalition of 75 countries formed in 2014 to defeat IS.

In a written ministerial statement, the defence secretary said the assessment of the civilian death was made after "routine and detailed post-strike analysis".

Mr Williamson said: "These events serve to remind us of the consequences of conflict and of the heavy price that the people of Syria have paid.

"It reminds us that when we undertake military action, we must do so knowing that it can never be completely without risk."

He added the incident would "not weaken" the UK's resolve to defeat IS.

In a statement issued after the attack, the MoD had said the Reaper drone "tracked a group of terrorists in a vehicle in the Syrian Euphrates valley... and successfully destroyed it and its occupants with a precision Hellfire missile attack".

Up until now, the MoD said it had seen "no evidence" that its strikes had caused civilian casualties.

But on Monday a BBC investigation suggested other civilians may have been killed as a result of RAF air strikes.

A source inside the coalition fighting IS highlighted a strike on 9 January last year in Mosul, Iraq, when an RAF Tornado fired a Brimstone missile on what was described as a "lorry bomb" in eastern Mosul.

It caused a large secondary explosion and the source said he believed two civilians were "almost certainly" killed.

The BBC has also discovered evidence that some RAF bombs have malfunctioned and strayed off target, potentially leading to civilian deaths.
The UK Royal Air Force admits killing a civilian with a drone strike in Syria, the first time the force has accepted responsibility for civilian deaths in the country since starting operations there four years ago.