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Pentagon Responds to Criticism Over Civilian Deaths in Mosul Blast


A federal policeman exits a house after searching it during fighting against Islamic State militants, on the western side of Mosul, Iraq, March 29, 2017.
A federal policeman exits a house after searching it during fighting against Islamic State militants, on the western side of Mosul, Iraq, March 29, 2017.

The Pentagon on Thursday said it would soon release a video showing Islamic State militants herding civilians into a building in the Iraqi city of Mosul and then firing from it, the U.S. military's latest response to an outcry over a separate explosion thought to have killed scores of civilians.

The U.S. military has acknowledged that the U.S.-led coalition probably had a role in the March 17 explosion, but said Islamic State also could be to blame.

Local officials and eyewitnesses have said as many as 240 people may have died in the Al-Jadida district when a blast made a building collapse, burying families inside.

Rights group Amnesty International and Pope Francis have both called for better protection for civilians caught in war zones in Iraq.

Federal policemen inspect the interior of a house as fighting against Islamic State militants continues on the western side of Mosul, Iraq, March 29, 2017.
Federal policemen inspect the interior of a house as fighting against Islamic State militants continues on the western side of Mosul, Iraq, March 29, 2017.

U.S. makes point with video

The Pentagon does not regularly release images or videos from operations. However, it has had to do so once already this month after it denied striking a mosque in Syria, releasing an aerial image to show the mosque was intact. That incident is under investigation.

A spokesman for the U.S-led coalition fighting Islamic State told reporters on Thursday he was working to declassify a video showing militants hiding civilians in a building in west Mosul to “bait the coalition to attack.”

“What was see now is not the use of civilians as human shields ... For the first time we caught this on video yesterday as armed ISIS fighters forced civilians into a building, killing one who resisted and then used that building as a fighting position against the [Counter Terrorism Service],” Colonel Joseph Scrocca said. He was using an acronym for Islamic State.

Tactics lead to changes

Scrocca said Islamic State tactics have led to adjustments in procedures, adding that about 1,000 Islamic State fighters remained in west Mosul, but did not give details on these changes. He added than an in-depth investigation into the strikes had been opened on March 17.

On Tuesday, Lieutenant General Stephen Townsend, the senior U.S. commander in Iraq, told reporters by teleconference it was “a little disappointing” that questions during the briefing focused on U.S.-led airstrikes.

“ISIS is slaughtering Iraqis and Syrians on a daily basis. ISIS is cutting off heads. ISIS is shooting people,” he said.

Pope Francis salutes as he leaves the St. John in Lateran Basilica after meeting parishioners in Rome, March 2, 2017.
Pope Francis salutes as he leaves the St. John in Lateran Basilica after meeting parishioners in Rome, March 2, 2017.

Pope concerned about trapped civilians

Amnesty International has said the high civilian toll in Mosul suggests U.S.-led coalition forces have failed to take adequate precautions to prevent civilian deaths.

Pope Francis on Wednesday said it was “imperative and urgent” to protect civilians in Iraq.

At his weekly general audience in St. Peter's Square, Francis said he was “concerned about civilian populations trapped in the neighborhoods of western Mosul.”

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    Reuters

    Reuters is a news agency founded in 1851 and owned by the Thomson Reuters Corporation based in Toronto, Canada. One of the world's largest wire services, it provides financial news as well as international coverage in over 16 languages to more than 1000 newspapers and 750 broadcasters around the globe.

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