Tragedy in Mosul: Civilians in a Deadly Trap
Mosul, Iraq suffered another airstrike by the international coalition, headed by the US. The exact number of civilian casualties is being determined. There are at least 10 people, including children, trapped under the debris. The coalition reps state, that they trapped ISIS soldiers by blocking the last road to town. Varvara Nevskaya tried to figure out which methods Washington and its allies used to deal with Iraqi terrorists.
While the leading international agency quotes Brett McGurk, American President's official rep, who optimistically states, that the coalition has already destroyed around 180 Islam leaders and has trapped many other ISIS terrorists, the world seemed to have forgotten that along with ISIS, hundreds of civilians suffer as well.
American and European channels most likely won't show you this footage as it defies the coalition's official position. The alliance states that civilians' safety is being controlled at the highest level. They probably forgot about these people that lost their homes and loved ones. They just needed to make a fancy speech during the briefing.
ISIS soldiers were here, fighting right behind the house. They tried to run away, hide behind the school. Then a missile hit the house. My brother is still buried under that slab of concrete. There are still mortars left there. There are about 25 people under those houses, under the concrete. We couldn't get them out. Unfortunately, this isn't a tragic accident, but a tendency. There are constant news of civilian casualties in west Mosul. All due to actions of the coalition headed by the US. In Wade Alen district, children became victims. A boy and a girl, with their parents, were right by the crashing house. Their parents are seriously injured, but alive. There is a total of 28 victims. There were 28 of us. They hit us from a mortar. Glass and other stuff started falling on top of us. This girl died, another is injured. My kids, son and daughter, are also injured. I picked the girl up, I wanted to bury her in the garden. But there was a sniper on the Fath-Ali mosque. He hit me right here, from the back.
Coalition's attacks on the "Islam state" in west Mosul have returned in mid-February. They didn't care for the intense population and possible civilian casualties. Coalition ignores locals' demands, who are now left without loved ones. We ask that you only attack your specific targets. Your planes shoot at houses with families still inside. We just ask the coalition's air force to be more selective during the attacks. They shoot at everything. ISIS soldiers travel over the houses' roofs. People who live there don't even know when they'll get attacked. More often than not, they die from DIY bombs and ISIS sniper rifles.
The total number of refugees from west Mosul has reached almost 100,000 people, according to Iraqi Minister of Migration and Relocation of Citizens, Jassim Mohammed Al-Jaff. What exactly did these people run away from? From ISIS Khalifat or the coalition's bombings? The report failed to say. Meanwhile, we remember the lying headlines of western tabloids. They numerously called actions of the Russian Aerospace Forces against ISIS and other terrorist groups in Aleppo, Syria to be barbarian actions against moderate opposition and civilians.
Western public and reps of the State Department have blamed Russia numerous times. Then why do those pseudo-moral messengers stay quiet now? Western media stays quiet. Why? Because they want to show freeing Mosul as an easy victory. Like the coalition simply freed them. What if we showed people how many civilians died? How many soldiers died — both Iraqi and not? That will be a completely different picture then. The fault of Americans and their allies will be clear in this humanitarian catastrophe. What will also become obvious is the low level of western soldiers' professionalism. Before Russian Aerospace Forces attacked Aleppo, Syria, civilians were warned to leave. In Mosul, people were told that the coalition's actions are of no danger to the civilians. Brett McGurk has already promised a total destruction of terrorists in Mosul. Mr. McGurk of course failed to mention just how many civilians' lives they're willing to sacrifice.