‘Staggering loss of civilian life’ during US-backed siege of Raqqa – UN

‘The ongoing siege by Syrian Kurdish militia supported by airstrikes of the US-led coalition on terrorist stronghold Raqqa is marred by many civilian casualties and displacement of some 160,000 people, a UN commission says.
The Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), a group of militias dominated by ethnic Kurds, launched their offensive on Raqqa last week amid weapons and military hardware supplies from the US. The effort is taking a serious toll on civilian residents of the city controlled by Islamic State (IS, formerly ISIS/ISIL), chairman of the UN Commission of Inquiry into the Syrian conflict said on Wednesday.
“We note in particular that the intensification of airstrikes, which have paved the ground for an SDF advance in Raqqa, has resulted not only in staggering loss of civilian life, but has also led to 160,000 civilians fleeing their homes and becoming internally displaced,” Paulo Sergio Pinheiro told the UN Human Rights Council, Reuters reports.
The official didn’t give an estimate for civilian casualties in the city.’
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