US-led coalition carried out deadly Mosul airstrike: Pentagon

The Pentagon has acknowledged that the US-led coalition carried out an airstrike in the Iraqi city of Mosul last week that left over 200 civilians dead.

The US Central Command (CENTCOM) said in a statement on Saturday it has opened an investigation into the Mosul airstrike.     

“An initial review of strike data ... indicates that, at the request of the Iraqi security forces, the coalition struck (Daesh) fighters and equipment, March 17, in west Mosul at the location corresponding to allegations of civilian casualties,” the statement said.

An investigation has been opened “to determine the facts surrounding this strike and the validity of the allegation of civilian casualties,” it added.

Earlier, the US-led coalition purportedly fighting the Takfiri Daesh terrorist group announced that it struck a location in west Mosul where at least 200 civilians were reportedly killed by aerial bombing.

On March 17, a large number of people were buried under rubble in Mosul after the US-led coalition's airstrike targeted a western neighborhood there. 

Locals and officials had blamed the US-led coalition for the deadly raid in spite of initial refusal by the coalition.

Efforts are still underway to pull out bodies from under the rubble. The exact number of casualties is still unknown, but some reports put the death toll at 230.

Meanwhile, the United Nations on Friday expressed grave concerns over the tragedy and loss of innocent lives.

This is the latest in a series of such deadly raids believed to be carried by the US-led coalition under the pretext of saving civilians in some of the war-ravaged Middle Eastern countries.

Just last week, dozens of Syrians were killed after American warplanes bombarded a school sheltering displaced people near the Daesh-held city of Raqqah.

And another deadly attack by the US air force on a mosque near the city of Aleppo resulted in death of 52 people. Yemen is yet another country in the region that has fallen victim to American bombings.

Earlier this month, the Pentagon acknowledged pounding several Yemeni provinces with more than 20 drones. Over a dozen civilians were killed in the attacks. 

The US-led coalition recently admitted to killing at least 220 civilians in airstrikes against Daesh in Syria and Iraq. However, international rights groups contradict the figure saying at least 2,700 civilians have been killed in US bombing campaigns since 2014.

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