US defends air strikes that killed civilians in Syria

The US military has defended as “legitimate” an air strike attack which killed dozens of people in Syria in 2019.

The attack on so-called Islamic State fighters killed 80 people, as the group made their last stand.

An independent investigation into the strike was never conducted, according to a New York Times report which accused the military of a cover-up.

An investigation concluded that “these two strikes were legitimate self-defence strikes” and “no disciplinary actions were warranted”, Cpt Urban continued.

Three bombs were dropped by US jets on a large group of people, despite drone footage showing the presence of civilians, according to the New York Times.