Review reveals civilian deaths in strike

WASHINGTON -- Just weeks after insisting American airstrikes in Somalia had killed no civilians, U.S. Africa Command said Friday new information revealed a woman and a child died last April when a U.S. strike targeted al-Shabab militants.

The revelation comes on the heels of a report by Amnesty International charging last month as many as two dozen civilians had been killed or wounded in U.S. airstrikes in Somalia.

Military officials at the time rejected Amnesty International's conclusions. But the report, combined with questions from Congress and a recent spike in U.S. strikes in Somalia, prompted Gen. Thomas Waldhauser, head of Africa Command, to order an in-depth review of the matter.

Earlier this week, that ongoing audit uncovered the April 2018 drone strike near El Burr killing four al-Shabab militants along with the woman and the child in a vehicle.

Air Force Col. Chris Karns said information about their deaths was never sent to Africa Command headquarters so commanders were unaware of them until this week. He said the reporting error is being addressed and commanders believe the two civilian deaths were an "isolated situation" but the audit is continuing.

"Credibility, transparency and accountability are fundamental to military operations," Waldhauser said in a statement. "It is critically important that people understand we adhere to exacting standards and when we fall short, we acknowledge shortcomings and take appropriate action."

In its report last month, Amnesty International said it analyzed satellite imagery and other data and interviewed 65 witnesses and survivors of five airstrikes, which were detailed in the report. The report concluded there was "credible evidence" the U.S. was responsible for four of the airstrikes and it's plausible the U.S. conducted the fifth strike. It said 14 civilians were killed and eight were injured.

U.S. Africa Command at the time said it looked at the five strikes and concluded there were no civilian casualties in four of them. In the fifth case the command said there were no U.S. strikes in that area on that day.

The April 2018 strike officials said they learned about this week was not one of those detailed by Amnesty International.

According to Karns, Waldhauser launched the audit soon after the Amnesty International report came out in an effort to make sure the command was doing everything possible to investigate potential civilian casualties. He said Lt. Gen. James Vechery, a deputy commander at Africa Command, is leading the audit team and received information about the new civilian deaths on Tuesday, as the review was progressing.

In an interview Friday, Marine Corps Maj. Gen. Gregg Olson, U.S. Africa Command's director of operations, said the initial assessment of that strike last year concluded there were only men from al-Shabab in the vehicle that was struck.

He said later, information on a Somali website alleged there had been civilian casualties. Military officials reviewed the strike and determine it wasn't credible but later got more information leading them to change their minds and determine a woman and a child also had gotten into the vehicle.