At least 42 civilians were killed Monday in a barrage of US-led air strikes on Islamic State group territory in the Syrian city of Raqqa, a monitor said.

Nineteen children and 12 women were among those killed in the raids, which hit several neighbourhoods in the northern city, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights told AFP on Tuesday.&nbsp;

The toll marked the second consecutive day of ferocious bombardment on Raqqa, more than half of which has been captured by the US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces battling IS.

The latest figures for Monday&#39;s raids take to 167 the number of civilians killed in coalition strikes since August 14, after the Observatory said at least 27 were killed on Sunday.

&quot;The tolls are high because the air strikes are hitting neighbourhoods in the city centre that are densely packed with civilians,&quot; said Observatory director Rami Abdel Rahman.

&quot;There are buildings full of civilians that are trying to get away from the front lines.

&quot;Coalition air strikes are targeting any building where any kind of Daesh movements are being detected,&quot; he told AFP, using an Arabic acronym for IS.

The United Nations estimates there are up to 25,000 civilians trapped inside the city, with food and fuel supplies short and prohibitively expensive.

The UN&#39;s humanitarian pointman for Syria, Jan Egeland, has said IS-held territory in Raqa city is now &quot;the worst place&quot; in the war-torn country.

More than 330,000 people have been killed in Syria&#39;s conflict, which began with anti-government protests in 2011 but has since mushroomed into all-out war drawing in world powers.&nbsp;

The US-led coalition, which operates in both Syria and neighbouring Iraq, says it takes all possible measures to avoid civilian casualties.

In August, it acknowledged the deaths of 624 civilians in its strikes in Syria and Iraq since 2014, but rights groups say the number is much higher.

Nineteen children and 12 women were among those killed in the strikes on Monday

At least 42 civilians were killed Monday in a barrage of US-led air strikes on Islamic State group territory in the Syrian city of Raqqa, a monitor said. Nineteen children and 12 women were among those killed in the raids, which hit several neighbourhoods in the northern city, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights told AFP on Tuesday. The toll marked the second consecutive day of ferocious bombardment on Raqqa, more than half of which has been captured by the US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces battling IS. The latest figures for Monday's raids take to 167 the number of civilians killed in coalition strikes since August 14, after the Observatory said at least 27 were killed on Sunday. "The tolls are high because the air strikes are hitting neighbourhoods in the city centre that are densely packed with civilians," said Observatory director Rami Abdel Rahman. "There are buildings full of civilians that are trying to get away from the front lines. "Coalition air strikes are targeting any building where any kind of Daesh movements are being detected," he told AFP, using an Arabic acronym for IS. The United Nations estimates there are up to 25,000 civilians trapped inside the city, with food and fuel supplies short and prohibitively expensive. The UN's humanitarian pointman for Syria, Jan Egeland, has said IS-held territory in Raqa city is now "the worst place" in the war-torn country. More than 330,000 people have been killed in Syria's conflict, which began with anti-government protests in 2011 but has since mushroomed into all-out war drawing in world powers. The US-led coalition, which operates in both Syria and neighbouring Iraq, says it takes all possible measures to avoid civilian casualties. In August, it acknowledged the deaths of 624 civilians in its strikes in Syria and Iraq since 2014, but rights groups say the number is much higher.

42 civilians killed in US-led strikes on Raqqa: Monitor

&nbsp;Islamic State militants have become increasingly desperate in the face of heavy air strikes on their Syrian bastion Raqqa,&nbsp;passing themselves off as civilians to escape detection and killing anyone who tries to flee, witnesses said.

At a camp for the displaced in the village of Ain Issa north of the city,&nbsp;people who arrived on Wednesday also said the air strikes supporting an assault by US-backed forces had inflicted widespread destruction as the battle intensified.

United Nations war crimes investigators said the air campaign had killed at least 300 civilians in the city, captured by Islamic State in 2014 in the chaos of Syria&#39;s civil war.

The escapees said the air strikes had flattened rows of apartment blocks along a main road but many of them had already been abandoned by residents fleeing Islamic State&rsquo;s reign of terror and the assault on the town, which began last week.

&quot;The coalition strikes destroyed a four-story apartment building. I saw 10 people trapped underneath,&quot; said Abu Hamoud. &quot;They used phosphorus.&quot;

Human Rights Watch expressed concern on Wednesday about the use of incendiary white phosphorous weapons by the US-led coalition, saying it endangers civilians when used in populated areas.

The coalition is backing the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), a group of Kurdish and Arab militias who have been closing in on Raqqa in northern Syria for months in preparation for the assault to recapture the city.

Hassan Kirfou,&nbsp;said an airstrike hit the mosque where he works just a few hours after he closed it for the night, and two other mosques were hit.

&ldquo;I saw three dead teenagers on top of each other outside the Nour mosque,&rdquo; he said.&nbsp;&ldquo;I don&rsquo;t know why they shot these areas. As far as I know there were only a few Daesh (Islamic State) snipers left there.&rdquo;

Much of the damage from air strikes was inflicted on Seif al-Dawla street, one of the main arteries of the town. &ldquo;My uncle and two cousins were killed. Their house was destroyed,&rdquo; Kirfou said.

The pressure on Islamic State, which is on the brink of losing the other centre of&nbsp;its self-proclaimed caliphate, the Iraqi city of Mosul, is taking a heavy toll on the group,&nbsp;people who arrived at Ain Issa in the last few days said.

&ldquo;They have started using microphones to tell people: &#39;Don&rsquo;t go to the infidels, stay with Islam&#39;,&rdquo; said Abdul Razak Crais, standing near rows of white tents as people lined up for food.

&ldquo;They poured gasoline on the cars of anyone who tried to escape then lit a match and burned the vehicles. I saw them haul people out of their cars and shoot them with AK-47s.&quot;

The coalition estimates that 3,000-4,000 Islamic State fighters are holed up in Raqqa, the administrative headquarters of Islamic State, which has claimed responsibility for multiple attacks on civilians across the globe.

Residents who fled say they have been laying landmines on streets, booby trapping houses and digging tunnels in preparation for battle.

&ldquo;They take over people&rsquo;s houses and create big holes in their walls so they can move back and forth during fighting,&rdquo; said Thaier Ibrahim.

Others at the camp said militants were hiding weapons and riding cars with civilians to avoid air strikes.

About 10,000 civilians have fled to the SDF-run Ain Issa camp about 60 km (40 miles) north of Raqqa with hundreds more arriving each day, Medecins Sans Frontieres has said.

Conditions have deteriorated because of the gruelling summer heat. But people like Mohamed Nahaf took the risk of getting shot to escape Islamic State and a battle for the city that could take months.

&ldquo;They cut off all roads. We had to pay a smuggler $200 to get us out,&rdquo; he said.

The coalition is backing the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), a group of Kurdish and Arab militias who have been closing in on Raqqa in northern Syria for months in preparation for the assault to recapture the city

Islamic State militants have become increasingly desperate in the face of heavy air strikes on their Syrian bastion Raqqa, passing themselves off as civilians to escape detection and killing anyone who tries to flee, witnesses said. At a camp for the displaced in the village of Ain Issa north of the city, people who arrived on Wednesday also said the air strikes supporting an assault by US-backed forces had inflicted widespread destruction as the battle intensified. United Nations war crimes investigators said the air campaign had killed at least 300 civilians in the city, captured by Islamic State in 2014 in the chaos of Syria's civil war. The escapees said the air strikes had flattened rows of apartment blocks along a main road but many of them had already been abandoned by residents fleeing Islamic State’s reign of terror and the assault on the town, which began last week. "The coalition strikes destroyed a four-story apartment building. I saw 10 people trapped underneath," said Abu Hamoud. "They used phosphorus." Human Rights Watch expressed concern on Wednesday about the use of incendiary white phosphorous weapons by the US-led coalition, saying it endangers civilians when used in populated areas. The coalition is backing the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), a group of Kurdish and Arab militias who have been closing in on Raqqa in northern Syria for months in preparation for the assault to recapture the city. Hassan Kirfou, said an airstrike hit the mosque where he works just a few hours after he closed it for the night, and two other mosques were hit. “I saw three dead teenagers on top of each other outside the Nour mosque,” he said. “I don’t know why they shot these areas. As far as I know there were only a few Daesh (Islamic State) snipers left there.” Much of the damage from air strikes was inflicted on Seif al-Dawla street, one of the main arteries of the town. “My uncle and two cousins were killed. Their house was destroyed,” Kirfou said. The pressure on Islamic State, which is on the brink of losing the other centre of its self-proclaimed caliphate, the Iraqi city of Mosul, is taking a heavy toll on the group, people who arrived at Ain Issa in the last few days said. “They have started using microphones to tell people: 'Don’t go to the infidels, stay with Islam',” said Abdul Razak Crais, standing near rows of white tents as people lined up for food. “They poured gasoline on the cars of anyone who tried to escape then lit a match and burned the vehicles. I saw them haul people out of their cars and shoot them with AK-47s." The coalition estimates that 3,000-4,000 Islamic State fighters are holed up in Raqqa, the administrative headquarters of Islamic State, which has claimed responsibility for multiple attacks on civilians across the globe. Residents who fled say they have been laying landmines on streets, booby trapping houses and digging tunnels in preparation for battle. “They take over people’s houses and create big holes in their walls so they can move back and forth during fighting,” said Thaier Ibrahim. Others at the camp said militants were hiding weapons and riding cars with civilians to avoid air strikes. About 10,000 civilians have fled to the SDF-run Ain Issa camp about 60 km (40 miles) north of Raqqa with hundreds more arriving each day, Medecins Sans Frontieres has said. Conditions have deteriorated because of the gruelling summer heat. But people like Mohamed Nahaf took the risk of getting shot to escape Islamic State and a battle for the city that could take months. “They cut off all roads. We had to pay a smuggler $200 to get us out,” he said.

Air strikes kill civilians as Raqqa battle intensifies, Syrians say militants shoot escapees

The top US general in Iraq told reporters on Tuesday that a strike near the Islamic-State-held Syrian city of Raqqa last week appears to have killed dozens of militants and not civilians.

Last week the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said an air strike that hit a school sheltering displaced people killed at least 33 people, adding it believed the strike was carried out by the US-led coalition fighting Islamic State in the area.

&quot;I would tell you that we haven`t completed our assessment of that event yet, but my initial read is (it is) not credible,&quot; Lieutenant General Stephen Townsend told reporters at a Pentagon via teleconference.&nbsp;

&quot;I think that was a clean strike,&quot; Townsend said.&nbsp;

&quot;We had multiple corroborating intelligence sources from various types of intelligence that told us the enemy was using that school and we observed it and we saw what we expected to see,&quot; Townsend said, adding that it appeared to have hit about 30 Islamic State militants.

(Reuters)

Last week the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said an air strike that hit a school sheltering displaced people killed at least 33 people

The top US general in Iraq told reporters on Tuesday that a strike near the Islamic-State-held Syrian city of Raqqa last week appears to have killed dozens of militants and not civilians. Last week the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said an air strike that hit a school sheltering displaced people killed at least 33 people, adding it believed the strike was carried out by the US-led coalition fighting Islamic State in the area. "I would tell you that we haven`t completed our assessment of that event yet, but my initial read is (it is) not credible," Lieutenant General Stephen Townsend told reporters at a Pentagon via teleconference. "I think that was a clean strike," Townsend said. "We had multiple corroborating intelligence sources from various types of intelligence that told us the enemy was using that school and we observed it and we saw what we expected to see," Townsend said, adding that it appeared to have hit about 30 Islamic State militants. (Reuters)

Strike in Syria hit militants, not civilians : US general

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42 civilians killed in US-led strikes on Raqqa: Monitor

Air strikes kill civilians as Raqqa battle intensifies, Syrians say militants shoot escapees

Strike in Syria hit militants, not civilians : US general