Defense Secretary orders inquiry into US airstrike that killed dozens in Syria

Defense Secretary Lloyd J. Austin III ordered a high-level investigation on Monday into a U.S. airstrike that killed dozens in Syria.

The investigation will be carried out by Gen. Michael X. Garrett, a four-star head of the Army’s Forces Command. Garrett will have 90 days to review inquiries related to the incident and investigate whether any laws of war were violated, reported the Pentagon.

“The American people deserve to know that we take this issue very seriously. And that we are committed to protecting civilians and getting this right both in terms of how we execute missions on their behalf and how we talk about them afterwards,” said Austin at a briefing on November 17. “And I recognize that and I’m committed to doing this in full partnership with our military leaders.

The strike took place on March 18, 2019, and was carried out by a classified Special Operations unit called Task Force 9. The airstrikes took place near the town of Baghuz, where the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) were under fire and in danger of being overrun.

The strike is considered to be one of the largest episodes of civilian casualties. Yet, the classified task force only acknowledged four casualties when it submitted its official report. The strike was never officially reviewed by officials in Iraq or the U.S.

Austin’s decision to open an inquiry of the case comes after the New York Times conducted an investigation of the incident and claimed that top officers and civilians had concealed the casualties.

The investigation showed that at least 80 people were killed from the strike but the army purposefully concealed the number.

“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. United States-led coalition forces bulldozed the blast site. And top leaders were not notified,” according to the Times. 

After the Times published its findings, the U.S. army acknowledged the attack for the first time and said they were justified. The military said the strikes were "legitimate self-defense," and that "appropriate steps were taken to rule out the presence of civilians."