The US military has confirmed coalition aircraft bombed a location in the Iraqi city of Mosul where residents and officials say dozens of civilians were killed as a result of an air strike.
Key points:
- Coalition bombed Al Jadidah neighbourhood on March 17 where dozens of civilians died
- Nearly 700 civilians have been killed since battle for Mosul began on February 19
- Iraqi forces pause operations to reassess risk to civilians as battle enters Mosul's Old City
Warning: This story contains graphic images
US Central Command, which oversees US military Middle East operations, said the request for the strike came from the Iraqi security forces and struck ISIS fighters and equipment.
Australia is one of the coalition partners conducting air strikes against suspected ISIS targets in Mosul, and the ABC has asked the Australian Defence Force to confirm Australian aircraft were not involved in the incident.
Civil Defence chief Brigadier Mohammed Al-Jawari said rescue teams had recovered 40 bodies and that many others lay buried in the rubble.
A formal investigation into the incident has now begun.
If the alleged number of people killed is confirmed, this incident could be the highest civilian death toll from a single air strike incident in more than 15 years.
The incident occurred on March 17 but what exactly happened is still unclear as IS militants fight to defend the areas of the city they still control.
In a statement, the coalition maintained their forces took reasonable precautions during the planning and execution of air strikes to reduce the risk of harm to civilians.
"Our goal has always been for zero civilian casualties, but the coalition will not abandon our commitment to our Iraqi partners," the statement said.
Lise Grande, the United Nations humanitarian coordinator for Iraq, said the UN is "stunned" by the terrible loss of life and that "everything must be done to avoid civilian casualties".
"International humanitarian law is clear. Parties to the conflict — all parties — are obliged to do everything possible to protect civilians," Ms Grande said in a statement.
"This means that combatants cannot use people as human shields and cannot imperil lives through indiscriminate use of fire-power."
Jihadists hiding among civilians
In a refugee camp just south of Mosul, the ABC spoke with Ahmad, who had just fled the west of the city.
His 21-year-old sister Ghofran, her two children and her husband were sheltering in the Al Jadidah neighbourhood.
Ahmad had not heard from her since the day of the air strike and he was concerned they may be among those killed.
"We just want the authorities to tell us if they are dead or alive," he said.
He said the jihadists had been deliberately hiding among civilians and the coalition needed to be more careful.
"In many of the neighbourhoods they are bombing, more families are being killed than fighters," Ahmad said.
Combat halted to talk new tactics
Late Saturday, a spokesperson for the Iraqi Government forces said they had "paused" their push to recapture western Mosul because of the high rate of civilian casualties.
The Iraqi Observatory for Human Rights said that since the campaign on western Mosul began on February 19, unconfirmed reports said nearly 700 civilians had been killed by government and coalition air strikes or Islamic State actions.
"The recent high death toll among civilians inside the Old City forced us to halt operations to review our plans," the spokesperson said.
"It's a time for weighing new offensive plans and tactics. No combat operations are to go on."
The US-backed offensive to drive IS out of Mosul, now in its sixth month, has managed to recapture the entire eastern side of Mosul and about half of the west.
But in the past two weeks, advances have stuttered as the fighting has entered the narrow alleys of the Old City.
"We need to make sure that taking out Daesh [Islamic State] from the Old City will not cost unwanted high casualties among civilians," the spokesperson said.
"We need surgical, accurate operations to target terrorists without causing collateral damage among residents."
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Photo: An Iraqi special forces soldier runs across a street during a battle with Islamic State militants in Mosul, Iraq March 3, 2017. (Reuters: Goran Tomasevic) -
Photo: Iraqi security forces advance during fighting against Islamic State militants, in western Mosul, Iraq, Tuesday, February 28. (AP: Mohammed Numan) -
Photo: Iraqi security forces help a displaced Iraqi woman flee her home as Iraqi forces battle with Islamic State militants in western Mosul, Iraq February 26, 2017. (Reuters: Alaa Al-Marjani) -
Photo: Iraqi security forces are pictured during a battle with Islamic State militants in western Mosul, Iraq February 26, 2017. (Reuters: Alaa Al-Marjani) -
Photo: A displaced woman covers her daughter after fleeing the battle near Mosul. (Reuters: Adhmed Jadallah) -
Photo: Iraqi soldier treks into battle. (ABC News: Aaron Hollett) -
Photo: Locals are hopeful the cruel rule of IS is over. (Reuters: Azad Lashkari) -
Photo: Members of the Iraqi rapid response forces stand on the top of vehicle during a battle between Iraqi forces and Islamic State militants in Wahda district of eastern Mosul, Iraq, January 8, 2017. (Reuters: Alaa Al-Marjani) -
Photo: Displaced people who fled the clashes walk past Iraqi security forces vehicles during a battle with Islamic State militants in Mosul, Iraq, November 30, 2016. (Reuters: Alaa Al-Marjani) -
Photo: Members of the Shiite Badr Organisation fighters take cover behind a berm during a battle with Islamic State militants at the airport of Tal Afar west of Mosul, Iraq, November 20, 2016. (Reuters: Khalid al Mousily) -
Photo: Iraqi special forces policemen dance while holding up weapons outside Karamah, south of Mosul, Iraq November 11, 2016. (Reuters: Goran Tomasevic) -
Photo: An Iraqi soldier gestures along a street in the Intisar district of eastern Mosul, Iraq, November 14, 2016. (Reuters: Air Jalal) -
Photo: A family fleeing fighting between the Islamic State and Iraqi army in Intisar district of eastern Mosul, make their way to safer territory, November 8, 2016. (Reuters: Zohra Bensemra) -
Photo: Iraqi soldiers pose with the Islamic State flag along a street in the Intisar district of eastern Mosul, Iraq, November 14, 2016, after capturing the same area from this district from the Islamic State on November 3. (Reuters: Air Jalal) -
Photo: An Iraqi special forces soldier stands atop a Humvee in the village of Bazwaia, some eight kilometres from the centre of Mosul, Iraq, Monday, Oct. 31, 2016. (AP: Marko Drobnjakovic) -
Photo: Iraqi special forces soldiers move in formation in an alley on the outskirts of Mosul, Iraq, Friday, Nov. 4, 2016. Heavy fighting erupted in the eastern neighbourhoods of Mosul on Friday as Iraqi special forces launched an assault deeper into the urban areas of the city and swung round to attack Islamic State militants from a second entry point, to the northeast. (AP: Marko Drobnjakovic) -
Photo: Tribal fighters walk as fire and smoke rises from oil wells, set ablaze by Islamic State militants before IS militants fled the oil-producing region of Qayyara, Iraq, November 1, 2016. (Reuters: Alaa Al-Marjani) -
Photo: A member of the Iraqi Special Operations Forces (ISOF) kisses a shiite flag on the top of a military vehicle on the outskirts of Bartila, east of Mosul, during an operation to attack Islamic State militants in Mosul, Iraq, October 19, 2016 (Reuters: Azad Lashkari) -
Photo: FILE - In this May 27, 2015 photo, Iraqi Shiite Hezbollah Brigade militiamen prepare their armoured vehicles for fighting against the Islamic State group in the front line after regaining control of eastern Husaybah town, 8 kilometers (5 miles) east of Ramadi, Iraq. State-sanctioned Shiite militias launched an assault on the Islamic State group west of the Iraqi city of Mosul on Saturday, Oct. 29, 2016, but reiterated that they would not enter the Sunni majority city. Jaafar al-Husseini, a spokesman for the Hezbollah Brigades, said they launched an offensive Saturday along with other large militias toward the town of Tel Afar, which had a Shiite majority before it fell to IS in 2014. (AP) -
Photo: Peshmerga military vehicles drive in Nawaran north of Mosul during an operation to attack Islamic State militants, Iraq October 26, 2016. (Reuters: Ari Jalal) -
Photo: Iraqi army soldiers are seen beside their armoured vehicles as a smoke from a nearby sulfur plant set alight by Islamic State militants rises behind, on the outskirts of Qayyara, south of Mosul, Iraq, October 23, 2016. (Reuters: Zohra Bensemra) -
Photo: Iraq's elite counterterrorism forces advance toward Islamic State positions as fighting to retake the extremist-held city of Mosul enters its second week, in the village of Tob Zawa, outside Mosul, Monday, October 24, 2016. (AP: Khalid Mohammed) -
Photo: A convoy of armoured vehicles belonging to international coalition troops drive during the operation against Islamic State militants outside the town of Naweran near Mosul, Iraq on October 23, 2016. (Reuters: Azad Lashkari) -
Photo: Smoke rises at Islamic State militants' positions in the town of Naweran, near Mosul, Iraq, October 23, 2016 (Reuters: Azed Lashkari) -
Photo: Peshmerga forces fire a mortar towards Islamic state militants' positions in the town of Naweran near Mosul, October 23, 2016. (Reuters: Azad Lashkari) -
Photo: An Iraqi special forces soldier stands in a Christian cemetery inside a church compound damaged by Islamic States fighters in Bartella, east of Mosul, Iraq. (Reuters: Goran Tomasevic) -
Photo: Iraqi army gather after the liberation of a village from Islamic State militants, south of Mosul, during an operation to attack Islamic State militants in Mosul, Iraq, October 21, 2016, as toxic smoke is seen over the area after Islamic State militants set fire to a sulphur factory. (Reuters: Thaier Al-Sudan ) -
Photo: Peshmerga forces stand behind rocks at a site of an attack by Islamic State militants in Kirkuk, Iraq, October 21, 2016. (Reuters: Ako Rasheed) -
Photo: Peshmerga forces prepare their anti-tank guided missiles in front of Islamic State militants' positions at the town of Naweran near Mosul, Iraq October 20, 2016. (Reuters: Zohra Bensemra) -
Photo: Smoke rises from clashes in the east of Mosul during clashes with Islamic State militants, Iraq, October 17, 2016. (Reuters: Azad Lashkari) -
Photo: Kurdish security forces take up a position as they fight overlooking the Islamic State-controlled in villages surrounding Mosul, in Khazer, about 30 kilometres east of Mosul, Iraq on October 17, 2016. (AP) -
Photo: Iraqi army soldiers raise their weapons in celebration on the outskirts of Mosul, Iraq, Thursday, Oct. 20, 2016. (AP) -
Photo: Displaced people who have fled ISIS territory gather in the village of Tinah, south west of Mosul. (Supplied: Thomas Robinson/Oxfam) -
Photo: Smoke rising over rows of tents at the Tinah camp, from oil fields burning in the distance. (Supplied: Thomas Robinson/Oxfam) -
Photo: Two young children living at Golat camp in Debaga north of Mosul pose for a photo, while men construct more tents in the background. (Supplied: Amy Christian/Oxfam) -
Photo: Mokhtar (village head) Nisr Amr, 35, sits with his son in the ruins of his father's house in the village of Imam Gharbi, some 70km south of Mosul. October 13, 2016. (Oxfam: Sam Tarling ) -
Photo: Omar stands inside by the ruins of his brother's house in the village of Imam Gharbi, some 70km south of Mosul, Iraq, on October 13, 2016.
The house was destroyed by Islamic State, when they took control of the village in 2014. (Oxfam: Sam Tarling ) -
Photo: Children run beside military vehicles passing by in the village of Imam Gharbi, some 70km south of Mosul, Iraq. October 13, 2016. (Oxfam: Sam Tarling ) -
Photo: Smoke from burning oil fields in Al Qarrayah fills the sky near the village of Imam Gharbi, some 70km south of Mosul, Iraq, on October 13, 2016. (Oxfam: Sam Tarling) -
Photo: Children watch military vehicles pass by in the village of Imam Gharbi, some 70km south of Mosul, Iraq, on October 13, 2016. (Oxfam: Sam Tarling )
First posted March 26, 2017 07:55:02
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