Unidentified warplane targets civilians, HRW calls for investigation

ERBIL, Kurdistan Region (Kurdistan24) – On Monday, Human Rights Watch (HRW) called for an investigation over an unidentified warplane that targeted a congregation in southern Kirkuk.

On October 21, a mysterious warplane purportedly targeted a mosque in the district of Daquq, southern Kirkuk, killing at least 15 women, and wounding at least 50 other people.

Azad Jabari, Head of the Security Committee at the Kirkuk Provincial Council told Kurdistan24 that the warplane was an Iraqi one, and that was only because the pilot was misinformed about the Islamic State (IS) positions.

“Peshmerga positions came under fire by the Iraqi Air Force warplane by mistake,” Jabari added.

He did not mention how many Peshmerga were killed because of the airstrike.

HRW in a statement released on Monday called for further investigation and clarification.

The HRW statement added that “Iraqi forces should investigate whether this was a possible unlawful airstrike that killed civilians and report their findings.”

“If this turns out to be their fault, they should take appropriate measures to compensate the victims,” the statement reads.

The Global Coalition against IS denied coalition warplanes were involved in the purported airstrike.

John Dorrian, the US-led Coalition spokesperson told AP that the coalition had "definitively determined" that it did not conduct the airstrike that killed civilians in Daquq.

"The Coalition uses precision munitions and an exhaustive process to reduce the possibility of civilian casualties and collateral damage because the preservation of civilian life is (of) paramount importance to us," Dorrian stated.  

Editing by Ava Homa