Amid the ongoing tensions between Iran, the US and Israel on the revival of the nuclear deal, Iran's forces conduct war games as a show of strength.

Iran's revolutionary guards conduct war games amid heightened tensions with US-Israel

Iran's state-run newspapers published an article Wednesday threatening to attack Israel with airstrikes for "just one wrong move".

Iranian state media warns Israel with airstrikes for any 'wrong move'

The United States on Monday said that no disciplinary action will be taken against its troops and officials responsible for the ghastly drone attack that killed 10 Afghan civilians.

Defense Department spokesperson John Kirby on Monday informed that that Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin approved a series of recommendations following an investigation into the deadly August incident.

“The secretary's not approving or calling for additional accountability measures,” Kirby told reporters during a briefing.

"I do not anticipate there being issues of personal accountability to be had with respect to the August 29th airstrike," he added.

The investigations by two officers, Gen. Kenneth F. McKenzie Jr., head of the military’s Central Command, and Gen. Richard D. Clarke, head of the Special Operations Command, found no grounds for penalising any of the military personnel involved in the strike, said Kirby, the Pentagon’s chief spokesperson.

Also read |&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/no-us-troops-to-be-punished-for-kabul-airstrike-that-killed-10-civilians-says-pentagon-436709">No US troops to be punished for Kabul airstrike that killed 10 civilians, says Pentagon</a>

"But in this particular case…there was not a strong enough case to be made for personal accountability” and no one was found criminally negligent, he said.

The US military had carried out the drone strike near the international airport in Kabul against the ISIS-K militants who were readying themselves to launch another suicide attack at the Hamid Karzai International Airport.

They claimed to have successfully killed the Islamic State – Khorasan (ISIS-K militants), but a survey of the area and interview of the civilians done by WION revealed that the strike actually claimed the lives of civilians.

That strike killed an aid worker, along with his nieces and nephews.

What led to the drone strike?

During the last days of the chaotic pull-out of troops from Afghanistan, the US had received an intelligence report about an imminent attack by the ISIS-K militants on Hamid Karzai International Airport in Kabul.

Also read |&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/world/us-drone-strike-may-have-killed-aid-worker-children-and-not-isis-k-militants-reports-412228">US drone strike may have killed aid worker, children, and not ISIS-K militants: Reports</a>

It was just days after 13 US service members were killed outside of the Kabul airport by a suicide bomber.&nbsp;

At the time, officials claimed that they had received intelligence information about a white Toyota carrying a car bomb.

It was reported that the US officials were monitoring the car and its driver, as he made several “suspicious” stops near the airport.

After monitoring him for nearly 8 hours, US launched a 20-pound Hellfire missile from a drone.

Even before the details&nbsp;of the casualties emerged, the US troops hailed the attack, claiming that ISIK militants were killed, with General Mark Milley—US’ highest military rank officer— justifying the bombing, saying, “The procedures were correctly followed, and it was a righteous strike.”

But it was later revealed that an aid worker, Zemari Ahmadi, was driving the car. And the airstrike killed seven children and two other adults, apart from Ahmadi—none of those linked to IS terrorists.

Pentagon admits mistake

Days after news reports emerged that the civilians were the ones who lost their lives instead of the terrorists, the United States admitted its mistake.

At that time, US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin issued a statement, apologising&nbsp;to the relatives of those killed in the drone strike.

Kirby said the decision to launch a drone strike was taken after thoughtful analysis and proper intelligence reports.

“What we saw here was a breakdown in process and execution and procedural events. Not the result of negligence, not the result of misconduct, not the result of poor leadership," Kirby said Monday.

The decision should not be interpreted as a sign that the department is "turning a blind eye," to the killing of civilians, Kirby explained, adding, “It's just that you have to look at (the counterterrorism strike)&nbsp;in time and space.”

“You have to look at this particular strike and not draw broader, wider conclusions about accountability and high standards of conduct based on this one outcome,” he added.

(With inputs from agencies)

The United States on Monday said that no disciplinary action will be taken against its troops and officials responsible for the ghastly drone attack that killed 10 Afghan civilians.

The United States on Monday said that no disciplinary action will be taken against its troops and officials responsible for the ghastly drone attack that killed 10 Afghan civilians. Defense Department spokesperson John Kirby on Monday informed that that Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin approved a series of recommendations following an investigation into the deadly August incident. “The secretary's not approving or calling for additional accountability measures,” Kirby told reporters during a briefing. "I do not anticipate there being issues of personal accountability to be had with respect to the August 29th airstrike," he added. The investigations by two officers, Gen. Kenneth F. McKenzie Jr., head of the military’s Central Command, and Gen. Richard D. Clarke, head of the Special Operations Command, found no grounds for penalising any of the military personnel involved in the strike, said Kirby, the Pentagon’s chief spokesperson. Also read | No US troops to be punished for Kabul airstrike that killed 10 civilians, says Pentagon "But in this particular case…there was not a strong enough case to be made for personal accountability” and no one was found criminally negligent, he said. The US military had carried out the drone strike near the international airport in Kabul against the ISIS-K militants who were readying themselves to launch another suicide attack at the Hamid Karzai International Airport. They claimed to have successfully killed the Islamic State – Khorasan (ISIS-K militants), but a survey of the area and interview of the civilians done by WION revealed that the strike actually claimed the lives of civilians. That strike killed an aid worker, along with his nieces and nephews. What led to the drone strike? During the last days of the chaotic pull-out of troops from Afghanistan, the US had received an intelligence report about an imminent attack by the ISIS-K militants on Hamid Karzai International Airport in Kabul. Also read | US drone strike may have killed aid worker, children, and not ISIS-K militants: Reports It was just days after 13 US service members were killed outside of the Kabul airport by a suicide bomber. At the time, officials claimed that they had received intelligence information about a white Toyota carrying a car bomb. It was reported that the US officials were monitoring the car and its driver, as he made several “suspicious” stops near the airport. After monitoring him for nearly 8 hours, US launched a 20-pound Hellfire missile from a drone. Even before the details of the casualties emerged, the US troops hailed the attack, claiming that ISIK militants were killed, with General Mark Milley—US’ highest military rank officer— justifying the bombing, saying, “The procedures were correctly followed, and it was a righteous strike.” But it was later revealed that an aid worker, Zemari Ahmadi, was driving the car. And the airstrike killed seven children and two other adults, apart from Ahmadi—none of those linked to IS terrorists. Pentagon admits mistake Days after news reports emerged that the civilians were the ones who lost their lives instead of the terrorists, the United States admitted its mistake. At that time, US Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin issued a statement, apologising to the relatives of those killed in the drone strike. Kirby said the decision to launch a drone strike was taken after thoughtful analysis and proper intelligence reports. “What we saw here was a breakdown in process and execution and procedural events. Not the result of negligence, not the result of misconduct, not the result of poor leadership," Kirby said Monday. The decision should not be interpreted as a sign that the department is "turning a blind eye," to the killing of civilians, Kirby explained, adding, “It's just that you have to look at (the counterterrorism strike) in time and space.” “You have to look at this particular strike and not draw broader, wider conclusions about accountability and high standards of conduct based on this one outcome,” he added. (With inputs from agencies)

US troops scot-free after Afghanistan drone attack. What really happened?

In the last days of the battle against the Islamic State group in Syria, when members of the once-fierce caliphate were cornered in a dirt field next to a town called Baghuz, a U.S. military drone circled high overhead, hunting for military targets. But it saw only a large crowd of women and children huddled against a river bank.

Without warning, a U.S. F-15E attack jet streaked across the drone’s high-definition field of vision and dropped a 500-pound bomb on the crowd. Then a jet dropped one 2,000-pound bomb, then another.

It was March 18, 2019. At the U.S. military’s busy Combined Air Operations Center at Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar, uniformed personnel watching the live drone footage looked on in stunned disbelief.

“Who dropped that?” a confused analyst typed on a secure chat system being used by those monitoring the drone. Another responded, “We just dropped on 50 women and children.”

An initial battle damage assessment quickly found that the number of dead was actually about 70.

The Baghuz strike was one of the largest civilian casualty incidents of the war against the Islamic State, but it has never been publicly acknowledged by the U.S. military. The details, reported here for the first time, show that the death toll was almost immediately apparent to military officials. A legal officer flagged the strike as a possible war crime that required an investigation. But at nearly every step, the military made moves that concealed the catastrophic strike. The death toll was downplayed. Reports were delayed, sanitized and classified. U.S.-led coalition forces bulldozed the blast site. And top leaders were not notified.

The Defense Department’s independent inspector general began an inquiry, but the report containing its findings was stalled and stripped of any mention of the strike.

“Leadership just seemed so set on burying this,” said Gene Tate, an evaluator who worked on the case for the inspector general’s office and agreed to discuss the aspects that were not classified.

Tate, a former Navy officer who had worked for years as a civilian analyst with the Defense Intelligence Agency and the National Counterterrorism Center before moving to the inspector general’s office, said he criticized the lack of action and was eventually forced out of his job.

The details of the strikes were pieced together by The New York Times over months from confidential documents and descriptions of classified reports as well as interviews with personnel directly involved and officials with top secret security clearances who discussed the incident on the condition that they not be named.

The Times investigation found that the bombing had been called in by a classified U.S. special operations unit, Task Force 9, which was in charge of ground operations in Syria. The task force operated in such secrecy that at times it did not inform even its own military partners of its actions. In the case of the Baghuz bombing, the U.S. Air Force command in Qatar had no idea the strike was coming.

After the strike, an alarmed Air Force intelligence officer in the operations center called over an Air Force lawyer in charge of determining the legality of strikes. The lawyer ordered the F-15E squadron and the drone crew to preserve all video and other evidence. He went upstairs and reported the strike to his chain of command, saying it was a possible violation of the law of armed conflict — a war crime — and regulations required a thorough, independent investigation.

But a thorough, independent investigation never happened.

This past week, after the Times sent its findings to U.S. Central Command, which oversaw the air war in Syria, the command acknowledged the strikes for the first time, saying 80 people were killed but the airstrikes were justified. It said the bombs killed 16 fighters and four civilians. As for the other 60 people killed, the statement said it was not clear that they were civilians, in part because women and children in the Islamic State sometimes took up arms.

The only assessment done immediately after the strike was performed by the same ground unit that ordered the strike. It determined that the bombing was lawful because it killed only a small number of civilians while targeting Islamic State fighters in an attempt to protect coalition forces. Therefore, no formal war crime notification, criminal investigation or disciplinary action was warranted.

But the Air Force lawyer, Lt. Col. Dean Korsak, believed he had witnessed possible war crimes and repeatedly pressed his leadership and Air Force criminal investigators to act. When they did not, he alerted the Defense Department’s independent inspector general. Two years after the strike, seeing no evidence that the watchdog agency was taking action, Korsak emailed the Senate Armed Services Committee.

Korsak did not respond to requests for comment.

A Secret Task Force

The United States portrayed the air war against the Islamic State as the most precise and humane bombing campaign in its history. The military said every report of civilian casualties was investigated and the findings reported publicly, creating what the military called a model of accountability.

But the strikes on Baghuz tell a different story.

The details suggest that while the military put strict rules in place to protect civilians, the Special Operations task force repeatedly used other rules to skirt them.

Even in the extraordinary case of Baghuz — which would rank third on the military’s worst civilian casualty events in Syria if 64 civilian deaths were acknowledged — regulations for reporting and investigating the potential crime were not followed, and no one was held accountable.

Nearly 1,000 strikes hit targets in Syria and Iraq in 2019, using 4,729 bombs and missiles. The official military tally of civilian dead for that entire year is only 22, and the strikes from March 18 are nowhere on the list.

The battle at Baghuz represented the end of a nearly five-year U.S.-led campaign to defeat the Islamic State in Syria. On the ground, Task Force 9 coordinated offensives and airstrikes. The unit included soldiers from the 5th Special Forces Group and the Army’s elite commando team Delta Force.

Over time, some officials overseeing the air campaign began to believe that the task force was systematically circumventing the safeguards created to limit civilian deaths.

The process was supposed to run through several checks and balances. Drones with high-definition cameras studied potential targets, sometimes for days or weeks. Analysts pored over intelligence data to differentiate combatants from civilians. And military lawyers were embedded with strike teams to ensure that targeting complied with the law of armed conflict.

But there was a quick and easy way to skip much of that oversight: claiming imminent danger.

The law of armed conflict — the rule book that lays out the military’s legal conduct in war — allows troops in life-threatening situations to sidestep the strike team lawyers, analysts and other bureaucracy and call in strikes directly from aircraft under what military regulations call an “inherent right of self-defense.”

Task Force 9 typically played only an advisory role in Syria, and its soldiers were usually well behind the front lines. Even so, by late 2018, about 80% of all airstrikes it was calling in claimed self-defense.

The rules allowed U.S. troops and local allies to invoke it when facing not just direct enemy fire, but anyone displaying “hostile intent.” Under that definition, something as mundane as a car driving miles from friendly forces could in some cases be targeted. The task force interpreted the rules broadly, the former officer said.

CIA officers working in Syria grew so alarmed over the task force’s strikes that agents reported their concern to the Department of Defense inspector general, which investigated the claims and produced a report. The results of that report are top secret, but a former task force officer said the CIA officers alleged that in about 10 incidents, the secretive task force hit targets knowing civilians would be killed. The former officer said the report determined that all the strikes were legal.

The inspector general declined to release the report or discuss its findings.

A Fatal Strike

The camp at Baghuz was effectively the Islamic State’s Alamo — a last stand where hard-core militants vowed to fight to the death. The coalition had laid siege, hoping to starve the fighters out. In six weeks, 29,000 people, most of them women and children, surrendered. On March 18, drone footage showed the camp still harbored large numbers of people suspected of being fighters and their families.

Coalition drones had scoured the camp 24 hours a day for weeks and knew nearly every inch, including the daily movements of groups of women and children.

What happened on the morning of March 18 is in dispute.

That day Islamic State fighters trapped in the camp launched a predawn counteroffensive, according to Central Command, which oversaw Task Force 9. It said hundreds of Islamic State fighters started firing rifles and grenade launchers and sending forward fighters with suicide vests. The coalition pummeled the fighters with airstrikes — so many that by midmorning, the coalition had used all the missiles on its drones. Only one U.S. drone, controlled by the task force, was left in the area, and it was unarmed.

At about 10 a.m., local Syrian forces reported they were under fire and in danger of being overrun and called for an airstrike, Central Command said. The task force drone tracked a group of fighters as they made their way through the camp to the area where the women and children sheltered.

A 5th Special Forces Group officer in the task force looked at the drone footage and did not see any civilians. But the drone he relied on had only a standard-definition camera. Central Command said there were no high-definition drones in the area that could get a better view of the target.

The Special Forces officer gave the order to fire. With no precision missiles left, the ground commander called in 500- and 2,000-pound bombs. The strike log classified the strike as self-defense.

In fact, a high-definition drone was available. The task force did not use it. Circling above, it was streaming footage of the same patch of ground to the operations center in Qatar. Because the task force operated at a high level of secrecy, the people in Qatar watching the high-definition drone were not aware the task force was about to call in a strike.

Central Command said the task force did not know that the better drone was overhead.

The high-definition drone recorded a very different scene from what was described by Central Command this past week. In it, two or three men — not 16 — wander through the frame. They have rifles but do not appear to be maneuvering, engaging coalition forces or acting in a way that would seem to justify a self-defense strike with 2,000-pound bombs. A chat log used by analysts who were watching the footage noted the presence of women, children and a man with a gun but did not mention any active combat.

Moments after the task force called in the strike, an F-15E attack plane hit the spot with a 500-pound bomb. Five minutes later, when ground forces saw people fleeing the blast site, the F-15E dropped two 2,000-pound bombs on the survivors. The entire attack took 12 minutes.

A Failed Investigation

Defense Department regulations require any “possible, suspected or alleged” violation of the law of armed conflict to be reported immediately to the combatant commander in charge as well as criminal investigators, the Joint Chiefs of Staff, the secretary of defense and the secretary of the Army.

After viewing the footage, Korsak ordered the units involved to preserve nine pieces of evidence, including video, and reported the strike to his chain of command. He also notified the command of concerns that the unit appeared to be covering up the alleged war crimes violations by adding details to the strike log that would justify a self-defense strike. Commanders did not take action.

Coalition forces overran the camp that day and defeated the Islamic State a few days later.

Civilian observers who came to the area of the strike the next day found piles of dead women and children.

Satellite images from four days later show the sheltered bank and area around it appeared to have been bulldozed.

Concerned that details of the airstrike would be buried as well, Korsak alerted the Air Force’s version of the FBI, the Office of Special Investigations. A major responded that agents probably would not look into it.

The Air Force Office of Special Investigations declined to comment.

Korsak again pressed his chain of command to act, informing his command’s chief legal officer in a memo in May 2019 that regulations required an investigation. His superiors did not open an investigation.

Unwilling to let the issue drop, Korsak filed a hotline complaint with the inspector general’s office in August 2019.

A four-person team in the office was already looking into shortcomings in the civilian casualty reporting processes in Syria and quickly set up an interview in a secure setting. After reviewing the high-definition footage and interviewing Korsak, the team, which included Tate, told superiors in the inspector general’s office that the allegation of a war crime was “extremely credible.”

But like the Air Force lawyer’s earlier effort, Tate’s team soon hit roadblocks. Central Command was slow to turn over evidence. Tate obtained video from several drones flying over Baghuz that day but could not locate the footage from the task force drone that called in the strike.

Tate studied the task force’s casualty report, but it did not match what he saw on video. The civilian deaths stated in the report were “an impossibly small number,” he said.

The final section of the casualty report was reserved for the legal opinion. In one version of the report that Tate was sent by the staff at Operation Inherent Resolve, the Baghdad-based military command overseeing operations in Iraq and Syria, a task force lawyer and an operations officer wrote that a violation of the law of armed conflict may have taken place. In another copy that came from Central Command, he said, that opinion had been removed.

Tate could find no evidence that the Joint Chiefs, the defense secretary or criminal investigators had been alerted, as required.

Within days of interviewing Korsak, Tate’s team took their findings to supervisors and told them the office was required to alert those officials and criminal investigation agencies. Tate said his supervisors took no action. The team pressed leaders numerous times over the next several months, and in January 2020, Tate’s team leader drafted a memo that would formally alert authorities. It only needed to be signed by the deputy inspector general overseeing the team. Tate said the supervisor did not sign it.

In the months that followed in 2020, the team finished its report on broader issues in the civilian casualty reporting process, but as it went through the editing and approval process, all mentions of the Baghuz strike were cut.

Tate became increasingly pointed in criticizing the leadership of the inspector general’s office. In October 2020, he said he was forced out of his position and escorted from the building by security.

A spokesperson for the inspector general’s office disputed Tate’s account. She said that it alerted the proper authorities at Central Command shortly after receiving the first hotline complaint in 2019. The spokesperson said the office also notified criminal investigators about the strike in October 2020, 14 months after receiving the hotline call.

Tate refused to give up. He contacted the Senate Armed Services Committee in May and sent a 10-page letter describing the strike and what he viewed as a “systematic failure” on civilian casualty reporting. The committee then contacted Korsak, who replied with a detailed email.

Tate waited for months for the committee to call back and give him an indication that it was actively looking at the case. This past week, he said with a sigh that he was still waiting.

In the last days of the battle against the Islamic State group in Syria, when members of the once-fierce caliphate were cornered in a dirt field next to a town called Baghuz, a U.

In the last days of the battle against the Islamic State group in Syria, when members of the once-fierce caliphate were cornered in a dirt field next to a town called Baghuz, a U.S. military drone circled high overhead, hunting for military targets. But it saw only a large crowd of women and children huddled against a river bank. Without warning, a U.S. F-15E attack jet streaked across the drone’s high-definition field of vision and dropped a 500-pound bomb on the crowd. Then a jet dropped one 2,000-pound bomb, then another. It was March 18, 2019. At the U.S. military’s busy Combined Air Operations Center at Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar, uniformed personnel watching the live drone footage looked on in stunned disbelief. “Who dropped that?” a confused analyst typed on a secure chat system being used by those monitoring the drone. Another responded, “We just dropped on 50 women and children.” An initial battle damage assessment quickly found that the number of dead was actually about 70. The Baghuz strike was one of the largest civilian casualty incidents of the war against the Islamic State, but it has never been publicly acknowledged by the U.S. military. The details, reported here for the first time, show that the death toll was almost immediately apparent to military officials. A legal officer flagged the strike as a possible war crime that required an investigation. But at nearly every step, the military made moves that concealed the catastrophic strike. The death toll was downplayed. Reports were delayed, sanitized and classified. U.S.-led coalition forces bulldozed the blast site. And top leaders were not notified. The Defense Department’s independent inspector general began an inquiry, but the report containing its findings was stalled and stripped of any mention of the strike. “Leadership just seemed so set on burying this,” said Gene Tate, an evaluator who worked on the case for the inspector general’s office and agreed to discuss the aspects that were not classified. Tate, a former Navy officer who had worked for years as a civilian analyst with the Defense Intelligence Agency and the National Counterterrorism Center before moving to the inspector general’s office, said he criticized the lack of action and was eventually forced out of his job. The details of the strikes were pieced together by The New York Times over months from confidential documents and descriptions of classified reports as well as interviews with personnel directly involved and officials with top secret security clearances who discussed the incident on the condition that they not be named. The Times investigation found that the bombing had been called in by a classified U.S. special operations unit, Task Force 9, which was in charge of ground operations in Syria. The task force operated in such secrecy that at times it did not inform even its own military partners of its actions. In the case of the Baghuz bombing, the U.S. Air Force command in Qatar had no idea the strike was coming. After the strike, an alarmed Air Force intelligence officer in the operations center called over an Air Force lawyer in charge of determining the legality of strikes. The lawyer ordered the F-15E squadron and the drone crew to preserve all video and other evidence. He went upstairs and reported the strike to his chain of command, saying it was a possible violation of the law of armed conflict — a war crime — and regulations required a thorough, independent investigation. But a thorough, independent investigation never happened. This past week, after the Times sent its findings to U.S. Central Command, which oversaw the air war in Syria, the command acknowledged the strikes for the first time, saying 80 people were killed but the airstrikes were justified. It said the bombs killed 16 fighters and four civilians. As for the other 60 people killed, the statement said it was not clear that they were civilians, in part because women and children in the Islamic State sometimes took up arms. The only assessment done immediately after the strike was performed by the same ground unit that ordered the strike. It determined that the bombing was lawful because it killed only a small number of civilians while targeting Islamic State fighters in an attempt to protect coalition forces. Therefore, no formal war crime notification, criminal investigation or disciplinary action was warranted. But the Air Force lawyer, Lt. Col. Dean Korsak, believed he had witnessed possible war crimes and repeatedly pressed his leadership and Air Force criminal investigators to act. When they did not, he alerted the Defense Department’s independent inspector general. Two years after the strike, seeing no evidence that the watchdog agency was taking action, Korsak emailed the Senate Armed Services Committee. Korsak did not respond to requests for comment. A Secret Task Force The United States portrayed the air war against the Islamic State as the most precise and humane bombing campaign in its history. The military said every report of civilian casualties was investigated and the findings reported publicly, creating what the military called a model of accountability. But the strikes on Baghuz tell a different story. The details suggest that while the military put strict rules in place to protect civilians, the Special Operations task force repeatedly used other rules to skirt them. Even in the extraordinary case of Baghuz — which would rank third on the military’s worst civilian casualty events in Syria if 64 civilian deaths were acknowledged — regulations for reporting and investigating the potential crime were not followed, and no one was held accountable. Nearly 1,000 strikes hit targets in Syria and Iraq in 2019, using 4,729 bombs and missiles. The official military tally of civilian dead for that entire year is only 22, and the strikes from March 18 are nowhere on the list. The battle at Baghuz represented the end of a nearly five-year U.S.-led campaign to defeat the Islamic State in Syria. On the ground, Task Force 9 coordinated offensives and airstrikes. The unit included soldiers from the 5th Special Forces Group and the Army’s elite commando team Delta Force. Over time, some officials overseeing the air campaign began to believe that the task force was systematically circumventing the safeguards created to limit civilian deaths. The process was supposed to run through several checks and balances. Drones with high-definition cameras studied potential targets, sometimes for days or weeks. Analysts pored over intelligence data to differentiate combatants from civilians. And military lawyers were embedded with strike teams to ensure that targeting complied with the law of armed conflict. But there was a quick and easy way to skip much of that oversight: claiming imminent danger. The law of armed conflict — the rule book that lays out the military’s legal conduct in war — allows troops in life-threatening situations to sidestep the strike team lawyers, analysts and other bureaucracy and call in strikes directly from aircraft under what military regulations call an “inherent right of self-defense.” Task Force 9 typically played only an advisory role in Syria, and its soldiers were usually well behind the front lines. Even so, by late 2018, about 80% of all airstrikes it was calling in claimed self-defense. The rules allowed U.S. troops and local allies to invoke it when facing not just direct enemy fire, but anyone displaying “hostile intent.” Under that definition, something as mundane as a car driving miles from friendly forces could in some cases be targeted. The task force interpreted the rules broadly, the former officer said. CIA officers working in Syria grew so alarmed over the task force’s strikes that agents reported their concern to the Department of Defense inspector general, which investigated the claims and produced a report. The results of that report are top secret, but a former task force officer said the CIA officers alleged that in about 10 incidents, the secretive task force hit targets knowing civilians would be killed. The former officer said the report determined that all the strikes were legal. The inspector general declined to release the report or discuss its findings. A Fatal Strike The camp at Baghuz was effectively the Islamic State’s Alamo — a last stand where hard-core militants vowed to fight to the death. The coalition had laid siege, hoping to starve the fighters out. In six weeks, 29,000 people, most of them women and children, surrendered. On March 18, drone footage showed the camp still harbored large numbers of people suspected of being fighters and their families. Coalition drones had scoured the camp 24 hours a day for weeks and knew nearly every inch, including the daily movements of groups of women and children. What happened on the morning of March 18 is in dispute. That day Islamic State fighters trapped in the camp launched a predawn counteroffensive, according to Central Command, which oversaw Task Force 9. It said hundreds of Islamic State fighters started firing rifles and grenade launchers and sending forward fighters with suicide vests. The coalition pummeled the fighters with airstrikes — so many that by midmorning, the coalition had used all the missiles on its drones. Only one U.S. drone, controlled by the task force, was left in the area, and it was unarmed. At about 10 a.m., local Syrian forces reported they were under fire and in danger of being overrun and called for an airstrike, Central Command said. The task force drone tracked a group of fighters as they made their way through the camp to the area where the women and children sheltered. A 5th Special Forces Group officer in the task force looked at the drone footage and did not see any civilians. But the drone he relied on had only a standard-definition camera. Central Command said there were no high-definition drones in the area that could get a better view of the target. The Special Forces officer gave the order to fire. With no precision missiles left, the ground commander called in 500- and 2,000-pound bombs. The strike log classified the strike as self-defense. In fact, a high-definition drone was available. The task force did not use it. Circling above, it was streaming footage of the same patch of ground to the operations center in Qatar. Because the task force operated at a high level of secrecy, the people in Qatar watching the high-definition drone were not aware the task force was about to call in a strike. Central Command said the task force did not know that the better drone was overhead. The high-definition drone recorded a very different scene from what was described by Central Command this past week. In it, two or three men — not 16 — wander through the frame. They have rifles but do not appear to be maneuvering, engaging coalition forces or acting in a way that would seem to justify a self-defense strike with 2,000-pound bombs. A chat log used by analysts who were watching the footage noted the presence of women, children and a man with a gun but did not mention any active combat. Moments after the task force called in the strike, an F-15E attack plane hit the spot with a 500-pound bomb. Five minutes later, when ground forces saw people fleeing the blast site, the F-15E dropped two 2,000-pound bombs on the survivors. The entire attack took 12 minutes. A Failed Investigation Defense Department regulations require any “possible, suspected or alleged” violation of the law of armed conflict to be reported immediately to the combatant commander in charge as well as criminal investigators, the Joint Chiefs of Staff, the secretary of defense and the secretary of the Army. After viewing the footage, Korsak ordered the units involved to preserve nine pieces of evidence, including video, and reported the strike to his chain of command. He also notified the command of concerns that the unit appeared to be covering up the alleged war crimes violations by adding details to the strike log that would justify a self-defense strike. Commanders did not take action. Coalition forces overran the camp that day and defeated the Islamic State a few days later. Civilian observers who came to the area of the strike the next day found piles of dead women and children. Satellite images from four days later show the sheltered bank and area around it appeared to have been bulldozed. Concerned that details of the airstrike would be buried as well, Korsak alerted the Air Force’s version of the FBI, the Office of Special Investigations. A major responded that agents probably would not look into it. The Air Force Office of Special Investigations declined to comment. Korsak again pressed his chain of command to act, informing his command’s chief legal officer in a memo in May 2019 that regulations required an investigation. His superiors did not open an investigation. Unwilling to let the issue drop, Korsak filed a hotline complaint with the inspector general’s office in August 2019. A four-person team in the office was already looking into shortcomings in the civilian casualty reporting processes in Syria and quickly set up an interview in a secure setting. After reviewing the high-definition footage and interviewing Korsak, the team, which included Tate, told superiors in the inspector general’s office that the allegation of a war crime was “extremely credible.” But like the Air Force lawyer’s earlier effort, Tate’s team soon hit roadblocks. Central Command was slow to turn over evidence. Tate obtained video from several drones flying over Baghuz that day but could not locate the footage from the task force drone that called in the strike. Tate studied the task force’s casualty report, but it did not match what he saw on video. The civilian deaths stated in the report were “an impossibly small number,” he said. The final section of the casualty report was reserved for the legal opinion. In one version of the report that Tate was sent by the staff at Operation Inherent Resolve, the Baghdad-based military command overseeing operations in Iraq and Syria, a task force lawyer and an operations officer wrote that a violation of the law of armed conflict may have taken place. In another copy that came from Central Command, he said, that opinion had been removed. Tate could find no evidence that the Joint Chiefs, the defense secretary or criminal investigators had been alerted, as required. Within days of interviewing Korsak, Tate’s team took their findings to supervisors and told them the office was required to alert those officials and criminal investigation agencies. Tate said his supervisors took no action. The team pressed leaders numerous times over the next several months, and in January 2020, Tate’s team leader drafted a memo that would formally alert authorities. It only needed to be signed by the deputy inspector general overseeing the team. Tate said the supervisor did not sign it. In the months that followed in 2020, the team finished its report on broader issues in the civilian casualty reporting process, but as it went through the editing and approval process, all mentions of the Baghuz strike were cut. Tate became increasingly pointed in criticizing the leadership of the inspector general’s office. In October 2020, he said he was forced out of his position and escorted from the building by security. A spokesperson for the inspector general’s office disputed Tate’s account. She said that it alerted the proper authorities at Central Command shortly after receiving the first hotline complaint in 2019. The spokesperson said the office also notified criminal investigators about the strike in October 2020, 14 months after receiving the hotline call. Tate refused to give up. He contacted the Senate Armed Services Committee in May and sent a 10-page letter describing the strike and what he viewed as a “systematic failure” on civilian casualty reporting. The committee then contacted Korsak, who replied with a detailed email. Tate waited for months for the committee to call back and give him an indication that it was actively looking at the case. This past week, he said with a sigh that he was still waiting.

How the US hid an airstrike that killed dozens of civilians in Syria

In response to the deadly&nbsp;suicide attack on&nbsp;Thursday,&nbsp;the United States military struck back at the Islamic State by bombing an IS member in Afghanistan on Saturday.&nbsp;The strike seems to have killed an Islamic State "planner".

The US Central Command said the strike took place in Nangarhar province, which borders Pakistan.&nbsp;"Initial indications are that we killed the target. We know of no civilian casualties," the US military said in a statement, referring to the strike.

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The devastating suicide bombing, which was claimed by the group, killed as many as 169 Afghans and 13 American service members at the Kabul airport.

Watch |&nbsp;Gravitas: ISIS-K: Group behind the Kabul blasts

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On Thursday, US President Joe Biden said the perpetrators cannot hide, and he vowed to strike back at the Islamic State group's Afghanistan affiliate. "We will hunt you down and make you pay," Biden said.&nbsp;

A US official said on Friday, the suicide bomber seems to have carried around 25 pounds of explosives, loaded with shrapnel.

Also Read |&nbsp;<a href="http://13.235.153.162/south-asia/afghanistan-staff-details-left-behind-at-uk-kabul-embassy-report-408865" hreflang="en">Afghanistan staff details left behind at UK Kabul embassy: Report</a>

The&nbsp;blast created by the&nbsp;massive amount of explosives and spray of shrapnel was such huge that it killed US troops, who were inside the airport gate as well as troops and Afghans outside, said the official on condition of anonymity.

Also Read |&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/south-asia/us-tells-citizens-to-leave-kabul-airport-gates-immediately-408913" hreflang="en">US tells citizens to leave Kabul airport gates 'immediately'</a>

Generally, a suicide bomber carries from five to 10 pounds of explosives.&nbsp;According to the US officials, the IS bomber got to within several yards of the gate at Kabul airport, where Afghans were crowded in as part of the ongoing evacuation from Afghanistan.

Meanwhile, Western forces are also running the Afghan airlift while bracing for more attacks.&nbsp;

(With inputs from agencies)

In response to the deadly suicide attack on Thursday, the United States military struck back at the Islamic State by bombing an IS member in Afghanistan on Saturday.

In response to the deadly suicide attack on Thursday, the United States military struck back at the Islamic State by bombing an IS member in Afghanistan on Saturday. The strike seems to have killed an Islamic State "planner". The US Central Command said the strike took place in Nangarhar province, which borders Pakistan. "Initial indications are that we killed the target. We know of no civilian casualties," the US military said in a statement, referring to the strike. The devastating suicide bombing, which was claimed by the group, killed as many as 169 Afghans and 13 American service members at the Kabul airport. Watch | Gravitas: ISIS-K: Group behind the Kabul blasts × On Thursday, US President Joe Biden said the perpetrators cannot hide, and he vowed to strike back at the Islamic State group's Afghanistan affiliate. "We will hunt you down and make you pay," Biden said. A US official said on Friday, the suicide bomber seems to have carried around 25 pounds of explosives, loaded with shrapnel. Also Read | Afghanistan staff details left behind at UK Kabul embassy: Report The blast created by the massive amount of explosives and spray of shrapnel was such huge that it killed US troops, who were inside the airport gate as well as troops and Afghans outside, said the official on condition of anonymity. Also Read | US tells citizens to leave Kabul airport gates 'immediately' Generally, a suicide bomber carries from five to 10 pounds of explosives. According to the US officials, the IS bomber got to within several yards of the gate at Kabul airport, where Afghans were crowded in as part of the ongoing evacuation from Afghanistan. Meanwhile, Western forces are also running the Afghan airlift while bracing for more attacks. (With inputs from agencies)

US airstrike targets IS in Afghanistan in response to deadly suicide attack

Three rockets targetted Iraq airbase that hosts US soldiers on Monday, said a spokesman for US-led coalition in Iraq. There have been no casualties.

Colonel Wayne Marotto, a spokesman for the international coalition in Iraq, said on Twitter that the Ain al-Assad base "was attacked by three rockets" in the early afternoon. He said in his tweet that the damage was being assessed.

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Initial report: At approx. 2:45 PM local time, Ain Al-Assad Air Base was attacked by three rockets. The rockets landed on the base perimeter. There are no injuries and damage is being assessed. For more information see <a href="https://twitter.com/SecMedCell?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@SecMedCell</a>
— OIR Spokesman Col. Wayne Marotto (@OIRSpox) <a href="https://twitter.com/OIRSpox/status/1412027260681523202?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 5, 2021</a></blockquote>
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The attack took place on Ain al-Assad facility situated in western province of Anbar. This attack is latest in the list of attacks against US interest in Iraq.

US forces, whose 2,500 troops are deployed in Iraq as part of an international coalition to fight the jihadist Islamic State group, have been targeted more than 40 times this year.

No group claimed responsibility for the attack immediately.

Monday's attack has come a week after deadly US airstrike against pro-Iran fighters in Iraq and Syria.

Pentagon said that the airstrikes were carried out as a retaliation for attacks against US interests. Secretary of State Antony Blinken declared they sent a "strong message" not to keep attacking American forces. &nbsp;

The Hashed-al-Shaabi, an Iraqi paramilitary alliance that includes several Iranian proxies and has become the main power broker in Baghdad, said the raids killed four of its fighters in the Qaim region near the border with Syria.

The June 27-28 overnight strikes targeted operational and weapons storage facilities at two locations in Syria and one in Iraq, the Pentagon said.

Hours later, pro-Iran militias fired several shells at an American base in eastern Syria.

Iran-aligned groups operate in Iraq, which counts both Tehran and Washington as allies, and in war-torn Syria, where Iran is a key backer of the Damascus regime.

(With inputs from agencies)

Three rockets targetted Iraq airbase that hosts US soldiers on Monday, said a spokesman for US-led coalition in Iraq. There have been no casualties. Colonel Wayne Marotto, a spokesman for the international coalition in Iraq, said on Twitter that the Ain al-Assad base "was attacked by three rockets" in the early afternoon.

Three rockets targetted Iraq airbase that hosts US soldiers on Monday, said a spokesman for US-led coalition in Iraq. There have been no casualties. Colonel Wayne Marotto, a spokesman for the international coalition in Iraq, said on Twitter that the Ain al-Assad base "was attacked by three rockets" in the early afternoon. He said in his tweet that the damage was being assessed. Initial report: At approx. 2:45 PM local time, Ain Al-Assad Air Base was attacked by three rockets. The rockets landed on the base perimeter. There are no injuries and damage is being assessed. For more information see @SecMedCell — OIR Spokesman Col. Wayne Marotto (@OIRSpox) July 5, 2021 × The attack took place on Ain al-Assad facility situated in western province of Anbar. This attack is latest in the list of attacks against US interest in Iraq. US forces, whose 2,500 troops are deployed in Iraq as part of an international coalition to fight the jihadist Islamic State group, have been targeted more than 40 times this year. No group claimed responsibility for the attack immediately. Monday's attack has come a week after deadly US airstrike against pro-Iran fighters in Iraq and Syria. Pentagon said that the airstrikes were carried out as a retaliation for attacks against US interests. Secretary of State Antony Blinken declared they sent a "strong message" not to keep attacking American forces. The Hashed-al-Shaabi, an Iraqi paramilitary alliance that includes several Iranian proxies and has become the main power broker in Baghdad, said the raids killed four of its fighters in the Qaim region near the border with Syria. The June 27-28 overnight strikes targeted operational and weapons storage facilities at two locations in Syria and one in Iraq, the Pentagon said. Hours later, pro-Iran militias fired several shells at an American base in eastern Syria. Iran-aligned groups operate in Iraq, which counts both Tehran and Washington as allies, and in war-torn Syria, where Iran is a key backer of the Damascus regime. (With inputs from agencies)

Rockets fired at Iraqi base hosting US troops: Coalition

The Israel-Hamas conflict is escalating again. After Israeli airstrikes, Palestinians clashed with police at the al-Aqsa mosque. As tensions escalate, "anti-Palestine" messages by a designer at Zara led to boycott calls against the fashion brand. Palki Sharma has more.

Gravitas: Palestinians clash with Israeli police at Al-Aqsa mosque

The Al-Aqsa Mosque is the third holiest site in Islam. But its location is also the holiest site in Judaism - known as the Temple Mount. While Al-Aqsa has been an Arab-Israeli fuse over the years, it has become a crucial flashpoint in the Israel-Palestine conflict this time.

Israel-Palestine clashes: Jews return to flashpoint site

As the Israel-Palestine conflict rages, what is India's position? Historically, New Delhi has supported Palestine, but today it maintains an independent relationship with both sides. This stance reflects in India's statement. Palki Sharma tells you how.

Gravitas: Israel or Palestine: Who does India support?

As Israel gear up for the Jewish holiday of Shavuot, WION correspondent Jodie Cohen takes you inside a bomb shelter in the country as we talk to citizens about the mood and situation these days in Israel.

Israel Ground Report: WION talks to citizen inside a bomb shelter

Pro-Palestinian groups took to streets across the globe, demanding an end to the escalating violence between Israel and Hamas militants in the Gaza Strip. In Jordan, protesters gathered outside the Israeli embassy and burned Israeli flags.

Pro-Palestinian protesters march in major cities as Israel attacks Gaza

Israel and Gaza are on the brink of war. 5 days of fighting, numerous airstrikes and 127 deaths later - Israel says it entered Gaza in an overnight operation. Netanyahu has vowed to continue the airstrikes. Palki Sharma asks- who is this conflict helping?

Gravitas: Israel vows to continue striking Hamas

Days of cross-border violence between Israel and Hamas show no signs of abating. Caught in the crossfire however are thousands of Palestinians. As air raids and bombing damage buildings and houses in Gaza, Palestinians escape their homes seeking refuge in schools.

Israel-Palestinian clashes: Thousands flee their homes in Gaza

The decades-old Israel-Palestine conflict has flared up yet again with two sides launching air attacks at each other. As hostilities enter the fifth day, with no sign of abating, the death toll is on a constant rise. The United Nations Relief and Works agency Director Matthias Schmale tells you more about ongoing tensions.

UNRWA Director Matthias Schmale speaks to WION amid Israel-Palestine aerial attacks

Balls of flames continue to rise high into the skies of Gaza. Both Hamas and Israel, seem dead set on a path of destruction. WION's Executive Editor Palki Sharma Upadhyay sat down with Paul Hirschson, the spokesperson of Israel's foreign ministry to understand the conflict better.

Israel's Foreign Ministry speaks to WION amid Gaza violence

What's it like to be in Israel right now? What's it like to witness the conflict first-hand? Wion's correspondent Jodie Cohen gets you a comprehensive ground report from Central Israel.

Gravitas: Life in Israel right now

WION's correspondent Jodie Cohen gets you a comprehensive ground report from Central Israel amid the ongoing Israel-Palestine conflict.

WION Ground Report: What is it like to be in Israel right now?

The ongoing clashes in Gaza have sent shock waves across the globe. Both Hamas and Israel, seem dead set on a path of destruction. What is unfolding in Gaza? How is the international community reacting? How is the clash epicentre, Al-Aqsa mosque celebrating Eid-Ul-Fitr? WION answers.

Israel-Palestine clashes: What is happening in Gaza?

Ongoing Israeli attacks on Gaza have killed 11 more Palestinians, taking the death toll to 83. Fatalities include 17 children and seven women, while a total of 487 people were injured to date. At least six Israelis and one Indian national have also been killed in the attacks.

Israel-Palestinian Conflict: Gaza death toll rises to 83, 7 Israelis killed in attacks

Israel and Gaza are on the brink of war. In the last 24 hours, over 1000 rockets were fired into Israel. Buildings have been torn down in Gaza by Israeli airstrikes. The conflict has claimed at least 50 people, including an Indian national. Palki Sharma has the details.

Gravitas: Violence escalates between Israel, Gaza

Palestinians have pushed the idea of a third UN Security Council meeting in less than a week. The UNSC will hold a new meeting on the worsening hostilities between Israel and Palestinians on Friday.

UN Security Council to hold another meeting on Israel-Palestine conflict

Israel & Hamas continue to exchange rocket fire as civilians suffer. The question of who is right & who isn't has gone up the smoke. Palki Sharma tells you why.

Gravitas: Israel & Hamas exchange rocket fire

A 30-year-old Indian woman who was working as a caregiver has been killed in a Hamas rocket attack at Ashkelon in Israel. According to the family members Soumya Santhosh, the rocket fell on her residence while she was talking to her husband over a video call.

Israel: Indian woman killed in Hamas rocket attack

49 people have been killed in Gaza and 6 in Israel in the most intensive aerial exchanges for years. Israel carried out hundreds of air strikes in Gaza into the early hours of Wednesday, as the Islamist group and other Palestinian militants fired multiple rocket barrages at Tel Aviv and Beersheba.

Israel-Hamas violence escalates: 49 Palestinians, 6 Israelis killed

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