Unintended Consequences

"At 11:42 a.m. local time on May 3rd, U.S. Central Command forces conducted a unilateral strike in Northwest Syria targeting a senior Al Qaeda leader."

CENTCOM

 

'Senior leader' of Al-Qaeda-linked group killed in US strike   Middle East Monitor

 

"Centcom takes all such allegations seriously and is investigating to determine whether or not the action may have unintentionally resulted in harm to civilians."

Michael Lawhorn, spokesman, Central Command

Military officials in the United States are now investigating a recent strike in Syria that senior officials initially claimed killed a high-ranking al-Qaeda fighter. The man who was killed by the Central Command strike was a 56-yar-old farmer, struck by a killer drone on May 3. A man whom family and other villagers identify as a father of ten who had been tending his sheep when an American missile hit and killed him. Lotfi Hasa Misso, a former bricklayer, lived in Qorqanya, Syria, described as hard-working whose "whole life was spent poor".

Hours after the strike the operation, overseen by US. Central Command, claimed a Predator drone strike targeted a "senior al-Qaeda leader". The brother of the dead man immediately contacted the famed White Helmets who arrived on scene to find a dead man and animals that had also been struck. Doubts were raised and communicated to the Pentagon. "We are no longer confident we killed a senior AQ official", said one official. Another clarified on the condition of anonymity that "though we believe the strike did not kill the original target, we believe the person to be al-Qaeda."

 

Mohammed Hassan Masto sits next to the grave of his brother Lutfi, who was killed on Wednesday, May 3, in a U.S. military strike, in the village of Qorqanya, a rural area in northern Idlib province, Syria, Sunday, May 7, 2023

 

Following the attack American military authorities refused to identify who their target was, much less how the targeting error occurred or even whether a legitimate terrorist leader had escaped. Some of the U.S. military authorities continue to insist that a 'senior leader' of an Al-Qaeda-linked group was killed in the and that the dead farmer, despite the family's and villagers' denials was indeed a member of al-Qaeda.

 

When such unintended consequences take place, as they have in the past, the Pentagon tends to expand investigations in light of sufficient credible evidence of harm to civilians emerging. In this case questions have been raised whether the information that had been used in the authorization of the attack can even be justified. 

 

The Biden administration last year insisted it would take steps to reduce such risks to civilians, promising greater transparency when unintended deaths occur. The U.S. military had covered up past instances of errant airstrikes inadvertently killing innocent people. Media outlet investigations revealed flawed intelligence and "confirmation bias" led to disaster. A 2021 strike during the U.S. evacuation of Afghans under emerging Taliban rule had officially been described as targeting a suicide bomber, but had killed ten Afghan civilians, seven children among them. 

The Washington Post broke the story after having given four terrorism experts details about Lotfi Hassan Misto, and where he lived, asking them to survey online discussions among jihadists following the strike for comments on the Qorqanya attack. The result was no references indicating Misto to be affiliated with a terrorist group; each of the consultants remarking it would be unusual for a senior leader in al-Qaeda to operate near the area, controlled by a rival group.

The Post shared coordinates of where the drone strike occurred -- near Misto's home and chicken farm. One U.S. defence official said the location is close to a "known area of interest" to al-Qaeda contradicting Misto's neighbours who say that no terrorists live or operate near Misto's home. Obtaining images of Misto's face before and after death, the Post provided them to Central Command where officials have not responded whether they believe he is the man killed in the strike.

Father-of-ten Lotfi Hassan Misto, 56, who has been identified by his family as the man killed in the strike on May 3. They say was a former bricklayer who lived in the quiet northern town of Qorqanya, according to the Washington Post