US says difficult to avoid Mosul casualties
A senior US general said on Wednesday it will be difficult to maintain "extraordinarily high standards" to avoid civilian casualties in Mosul, even as the US military begins a formal investigation into an explosion in the Iraqi city that is believed to have killed scores of civilians.
The US military has acknowledged the US-led coalition probably had a role in the March 17 explosion but said Daesh also could be to blame. Local officials and eyewitnesses say as many as 240 people may have been killed in the al-Jadida district when a huge blast caused a building to collapse, burying families inside.
When asked in a congressional hearing about the standards used by the US military to avoid civilian casualties, General Joseph Votel said it would be difficult to apply those standards in the narrow, crowded streets of the Old City in west Mosul.
"I do agree that as we move into these urban environments, it is going to become more and more difficult to apply extraordinarily high standards for the things that we're doing, although we will try," Votel said at a House Armed Services Committee hearing.
Votel, the head of US Central Command, said there had been no change in the rules of engagement, but commanders closer to the fighting had been given more authority in order to reduce potential delays. US officials have said that an increase in civilian casualties was to be expected as the war against the insurgents entered its deadliest phase.
Iraqi special forces and police battled Daesh militants in close-quarters fighting to edge closer to the al-Nuri mosque in western Mosul on Wednesday, tightening their control around the landmark site in the battle to recapture Iraq's second city.
The comments about standards by Votel are likely to cause concern. Human rights groups already are slamming the US military for an increase in the allegations of civilian casualties in recent weeks.
The United Nations Secretary-General arrived in Iraq amid a growing humanitarian crisis due to months-long fighting against Daesh in Mosul. The U.N. Assistance Mission to Iraq says Antonio Guterres landed in Baghdad yesterday to focus on the dire humanitarian situation on the ground. Amid reports of dozens civilians killed by airstrikes in Mosul, the statement said that "protection of civilians must be the absolute priority."
His visit comes at a critical time for Iraq, which is fighting to retake Mosul in a battle that has sparked myriad humanitarian concerns. Widespread displacement is one, with Iraqi authorities saying that more than 200,000 people have fled west Mosul since February. Camps have been set up around the city to provide shelter for the displaced, while others are staying with relatives, renting accommodation or residing in makeshift shelters o
r unfinished buildings. Displacement from Mosul has not reached the worst-case scenario of a million or more people that had been feared, but that has come at the cost of huge numbers of civilians being trapped in the middle of the battle.
The US military has acknowledged the US-led coalition probably had a role in the March 17 explosion but said Daesh also could be to blame. Local officials and eyewitnesses say as many as 240 people may have been killed in the al-Jadida district when a huge blast caused a building to collapse, burying families inside.
When asked in a congressional hearing about the standards used by the US military to avoid civilian casualties, General Joseph Votel said it would be difficult to apply those standards in the narrow, crowded streets of the Old City in west Mosul.
"I do agree that as we move into these urban environments, it is going to become more and more difficult to apply extraordinarily high standards for the things that we're doing, although we will try," Votel said at a House Armed Services Committee hearing.
Votel, the head of US Central Command, said there had been no change in the rules of engagement, but commanders closer to the fighting had been given more authority in order to reduce potential delays. US officials have said that an increase in civilian casualties was to be expected as the war against the insurgents entered its deadliest phase.
Iraqi special forces and police battled Daesh militants in close-quarters fighting to edge closer to the al-Nuri mosque in western Mosul on Wednesday, tightening their control around the landmark site in the battle to recapture Iraq's second city.
The comments about standards by Votel are likely to cause concern. Human rights groups already are slamming the US military for an increase in the allegations of civilian casualties in recent weeks.
The United Nations Secretary-General arrived in Iraq amid a growing humanitarian crisis due to months-long fighting against Daesh in Mosul. The U.N. Assistance Mission to Iraq says Antonio Guterres landed in Baghdad yesterday to focus on the dire humanitarian situation on the ground. Amid reports of dozens civilians killed by airstrikes in Mosul, the statement said that "protection of civilians must be the absolute priority."
His visit comes at a critical time for Iraq, which is fighting to retake Mosul in a battle that has sparked myriad humanitarian concerns. Widespread displacement is one, with Iraqi authorities saying that more than 200,000 people have fled west Mosul since February. Camps have been set up around the city to provide shelter for the displaced, while others are staying with relatives, renting accommodation or residing in makeshift shelters o
r unfinished buildings. Displacement from Mosul has not reached the worst-case scenario of a million or more people that had been feared, but that has come at the cost of huge numbers of civilians being trapped in the middle of the battle.