U.S. military officials are walking back claims that a recent drone strike took out a notorious terrorist, with the deceased man's family speaking out.
Believed to be a senior Al-Qaeda leader, the dead man's family identified him as Lotfi Hassan Misto. Misto, 56, reportedly worked as a bricklayer in northwest Syria. A Hellfire missile killed Misto while he tended to his sheep.
Video footage corroborates the family's account of what he was doing at the time.
United States Central Command (CENTCOM) announced the day of the Predator Drone strike that it targeted “a senior Al Qaeda leader.” The statement did not identify the supposed target or provide additional evidence.
Two Defense Department officials revised CENTCOM's initial claims. Speaking on the condition of anonymity, they expressed doubt as to the identity of the target in the May 3 strike.
The Washington Post reports:
“We are no longer confident we killed a senior AQ official,” one official said. The other, offering a slightly different view, said “though we believe the strike did not kill the original target, we believe the person to be al-Qaeda.” Both spoke on the condition of anonymity to discuss preliminary determinations of an ongoing investigation into the incident.
In the weeks since the attack, U.S. military officials have refused to identify publicly who their target was, how the apparent error occurred, whether a legitimate terrorist leader escaped and why some in the Pentagon maintain Misto was a member of al-Qaeda despite his family's denials.
Misto's relatives described him as a kind, generous man who spent his life poor.
The Post continues:
In a statement, Michael Lawhorn, a spokesman for Central Command, said officials are aware of reports of a civilian casualty and continue to assess the outcome.
“Centcom takes all such allegations seriously and is investigating to determine whether or not the action may have unintentionally resulted in harm to civilians,” Lawhorn said Thursday.
The Biden administration announced last year it would take steps to reduce the risks to civilians from botched airstrikes while promoting greater transparency when deadly errors occur.
The risk-mitigation plan followed a series of mistakes, including an Aug. 27, 2021 drone strike in Kabul, Afghanistan that killed 10 civilians, including seven children.
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Old news, bad planning day 1
So what does the military call this? A friendly fire death?
Hi we’re the US military we are illegally in your country and you are an accidental death.
‘Collateral damage’ guaranteed to make US unlimited friends worldwide. But hey, all targets look the same at 40,000 feet, right?