16 civilians dead in coalition strikes near Raqqa: Monitor

Internally displaced people who fled Raqqa city gather to fill water containers in Raqqa Governorate, Syria. (REUTERS)

BEIRUT: At least 16 civilians were killed in bombing raids early Wednesday by the US-led coalition near Daesh’s Syrian bastion Raqqa, a monitor said.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the toll included a woman and her five children, as well as three couples.
“The coalition strikes hit Al-Baruda, a village about 15 km west of Raqqa city,” said Observatory head Rami Abdel Rahman.
“Most of those killed had fled eastern parts of the province of Homs,” he added.
The US-led coalition is providing air cover for a major offensive to capture Raqqa city, the heart of Daesh territory in Syria.
As of Wednesday, the US-backed Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) were only 3 km from Raqqa at their closest point to the east.
The strikes on Al-Baruda come after the Observatory reported the highest monthly civilian death toll for the coalition since it began bombing Syria on Sept. 23, 2014.
Between April 23 and May 23 of this year, coalition strikes killed a total of 225 civilians in Syria, the Britain-based Observatory said.
Earlier this month, the US military said that coalition airstrikes in Iraq and Syria had “unintentionally” killed a total of 352 civilians since 2014.
More than 320,000 people have been killed and millions more displaced since Syria’s conflict broke out in March 2011.