In this file photo, US F/A-18 fighter jets take off for Iraq from the flight deck of the US Navy aircraft carrier USS George H.W. Bush, in the Persian Gulf. (© AP)
At least 57 people have been killed in US airstrikes on an ISIS prison in the town of Mayadeen in the Syrian province of Deir Ezzor, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR), a hardcore pro-opposition media outlet supporting the Western policy in Syria.
“The strikes hit an IS [ISIS] jail in Mayadeen at dawn on Monday, killing 42 prisoners and 15 jihadists,” the AFP news agency quoted SOHR Chief Rami Abdel Rahman.
The US-led coalition described the targeted area as ISIS “command and control” facilities.
“The coalition conducted strikes on known IS [ISIS] command and control facilities and other ISIS infrastructure,” Joe Scrocca, the coalition’s director of public affairs, told Reuters by email. “The removal of these facilities disrupts [ISIS’s] ability to facilitate and provoke terrorist attacks against the coalition, our partner forces and in our homelands. This mission was meticulously planned and executed to reduce the risk of collateral damage and potential harm to non-combatants.”
He added that the coalition will investigate the allegations.
