Geolocation
Airwars assessment
Up to five people were killed and three others were injured following alleged US drone strikes on a moving vehicle in Qatan Valley, Hadhramout province at 3:15am on the 1st of August 2013. There was contention in reporting on the number and status of those killed. Some sources reported that all those killed were AQAP. However a number of sources alleged at least one or more of those killed were civilians, and one child reportedly died in the strike.
Two drones “targeted” the vehicle at dawn, killing the occupants and injuring three more, an unnamed official told AFP. The source did not specify if those injured were militants or civilians, therefore they have been counted as civilians until further information comes to light.
The vehicle was a Toyota Hilux, residents told Aden al Ghad. It was destroyed and the bodies ‘completely burnt‘. Some international and local media reported the dead were Al Qaeda militants, citing unnamed sources. However, locals in the area of Hadramout claim that those killed had no links to AQAP at all.
Haykal Bafana, a lawyer from Hadramout, reiterated this, tweeting: “Drone strike Hadhramaut. “Anonymous security source” tells press 4 AQ killed. Friend in Al Qatn: 4 Al-Sai’aar tribesmen, no AQ links.” He continued, tweeting that his sources in Hadramout confirmed what local journalist Abdul Razzaq al Jamal reported on Twitter: the four dead were civilians, one a young child named Abdullah al Esehaq (Ishaq?), aged 12. Razzaq named the three adults: Abu Al-Magdad, Mundhar and Bashar. He said all four were from the Al Sai-aari tribe. A US-based blog named the victims as Abu Al-Magdad Al Sai-aari, Mundhar Al Sai-aari, Bashar Al Sai-aari and pointed out that the images show that the vehicle bombed was carrying concrete blocks.
In addition, some reports claim that the drone strike killed three alleged AQAP militants and only one civilian, Saleh Yaslim Saeed bin Ishaq, 28, who was waiting by a gas station at dawn when the vehicle with the three men stopped and agreed to give him a ride home. His ID card and belongings were found in the destroyed vehicle. An anonymous source from the local police confirmed that the three other dead were wanted militants and that Mr. Ishaq was an innocent person whose presence in the car was accidental. Saleh’s mother testified later that her son left the house at around 8 p.m that evening to go to the local market in Hadramout. Around the dawn prayer, his parents got informed about the killing of their son. Saleh’s mother wished to see him after his death, yet his remains were buried in the Nessais cemetery near their village. In addition, Salehs father stated that there was no official declaration that the three men were accused of anything or were wanted, or else he would have not used the car.
Mwatana also reported on the civilian Saleh being killed and included a letter dated September 8, 2013 from the director general of the al-Qatan Directorate (and head of the local council there) to the deputy governor for Valley and Desert District Affairs (Hadramout Governorate), which states the following in relation to Saleh’s death: “The above-mentioned was killed by an airstrike of a drone in Hodab, Wadi Sir on 24 Ramadan 1434 AH corresponding to August 1, 2013, after he got onto the car of the target group as he did not avail of any personal means of transportation to shift him from Wadi Sir Highway to his home in Hadd Aal Ishaq Village in Wadi Sir. While innocent, he was killed at a quirk of fate during the incident. Therefore, you are kindly requested to communicate with the competent authorities to compensate the family of the victim in question.” The family of Saleh met with the director general but did not receive any compensation.
Mwatana also spoke with Mohammed Awad bin Ishaq, a shopkeeper in the market, who said that it was late, around 1:30 a.m., when he tried to convince Saleh to spend the night at his home, but then a car stopped at the market. “The car, a 2013 Toyota pick-up, was loaded with children’s clothes for Eid, and there were three people in it. Saleh asked if he could hitch a ride with them, and they agreed. About half an hour later, Mohammed heard two loud explosions. When he subsequently received calls from the nearby villages that a drone had hit a Toyota vehicle, he realized that it was the car Saleh had hitched a ride in. Mohammed and other locals immediately went to the place of the explosion. They found the car on fire. Body parts and Eid children’s clothing and shoes were scattered around the car. There were two holes in the ground. The aircraft could be heard still flying in the air but they were unable to see it in the dark.”
The incident occured at 03:15:00 local time.
The victims were named as:
Family members (3)
The victims were named as:
Geolocation notes
Reports of the incident mention the vicinity of the town of Al-Qatn (بالقرب من قطن) in the Hadhramout province (حضرموت), for which the generic coordinates are: 15.843992, 48.458344. Due to limited satellite imagery and information available to Airwars, we were unable to verify the location further.
Summary
Sources (44) [ collapse]
Media
from sources (6) [ collapse]
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The destroyed vehicle in Wadi Ser, where up to five civilians were struck by a suspected US drone strike, August 1st (via Aden Al Ghad)
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Vehicle destroyed by alleged US drone strikes in Wadi Hadramout on August 1, 2013. (Image posted by Hadhramis Free Movement via Facebook)
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Vehicle destroyed by alleged US drone strikes in Wadi Hadramout on August 1, 2013. (Image posted by The peaceful southern liberation revolution via Facebook)
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Vehicle destroyed by alleged US drone strikes in Wadi Hadramout on August 1, 2013. (Image posted by Healing wounds news network via Facebook)
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Vehicle ignited by flames from alleged US drone strikes in Wadi Hadramout on August 1, 2013. (Image posted by Abdul Razzaq Al-Jamal via Facebook)
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Vehicle carrying concrete blocks destroyed by alleged US drone strikes in Wadi Hadramout on August 1, 2013. (Image posted byCarol Anne Grayson (Radical Sister) blog)