Drone strike victim may not have been al-Qaeda leader, say US military officials
US military officials have said they are no longer confident that a drone strike killed a senior al-Qaeda leader after the dead man's family claimed he was innocent.
Lotfi Hassan Misto, 56, is believed to have been killed by an MQ-9 Predator drone that had been surveying his home town in north-west Syria for two weeks.
US Central Command (Centcom) oversaw the operation and on May 3, the day of the attack, said they had conducted a strike "targeting a senior al-Qaeda leader”.
No other details were provided and the victim’s identity is yet to be confirmed, but Misto’s family told the Washington Post that he was the person killed.
They claim that he had no ties to terrorist organisations and that he was tending to his sheep when he was killed.
His family told the Post that he had lived quietly in the village for years after spending much of his life in poverty and was a father of ten.
Civilian casualty
There is now doubt inside the Pentagon as to who was killed in the attack, two defence officials said.
“We are no longer confident we killed a senior AQ official,” one said.
Another added: “Though we believe the strike did not kill the original target, we believe the person to be al-Qaeda.”
Michael Lawhorn, a spokesman for Centcom, said in a statement that they were aware of reports of a civilian casualty.
“Centcom takes all such allegations seriously and is investigating to determine whether or not the action may have unintentionally resulted in harm to civilians,” he said on Thursday.
Last year, President Joe Biden vowed to reduce the risk of killing unintended targets and promised greater transparency when unintended killings happen.
Flawed intelligence
Numerous reports have uncovered how flawed intelligence has led to tragedy.
In 2021, a strike during the US evacuation of Afghanistan that officials first claimed took out a suicide bomber actually killed ten civilians, including seven children.
Terrorism experts told the Post that it would be unusual for al-Qaeda to operate in a significant way in the area where Misto was killed.
The missile hit an area close to Misto’s home and chicken farm. The Syrian Civil Defense, a humanitarian response group often referred to as the “White Helmets”, were at the location within minutes of the attack.
Video footage shows several people standing nearby as the aid workers arrived.
Muhammed Misto, one of Misto’s sons, can be seen being pulled away from his father’s severely disfigured body by two men.
Misto's neighbours said that the accusations of an al-Qaeda affiliation did not ring true.
“He was born here and died here,” one told the Post.
Misto’s brother said: “If they claim that he’s a terrorist, or that they got someone from al-Qaeda… They’re all liars.”
