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Russia condemns deadly US-led airstrike near Iraq's Kirkuk as 'war crime'

Saturday, 22 October 2016 6:52 PM [ Last Update: Sunday, 23 October 2016 8:28 AM ]

Iraqis search through rubble after a US-led coalition airstrike targeted a Shia mourning ceremony in the town of Daquq, south of the city of Kirkuk, on October 21, 2016. (Photo by Iraqi al-Ghadeer television network)

Russia has condemned the recent bombing of dozens of civilian mourners in Iraq’s oil-rich northern province of Kirkuk, saying the so-called US-led coalition is committing war crimes in the Arab country.

“Judging by the eyewitness accounts, the mourning procession was mistaken for terrorists by the coalition aviation. Dozens of Iraqi civilians died, including women and children,” Russian Defense Ministry spokesman Igor Konashenkov said in a statement released on Saturday.

He added that Russian reconnaissance had pinpointed two jets conducting airstrikes on Daquq, located 30 kilometers south of Kirkuk, stressing that there were no Daesh militants there.

Konashenkov further noted that US-led coalition strikes on residential areas bore the mark of “war crimes.”

“We have observed several times that these deadly strikes ... which have all the hallmarks of war crimes, have practically become a daily routine by the international coalition's warplanes,” he said.

The senior Russian official went on to say that civilians, along with non-military infrastructure, were increasingly being targeted by the member states of the US-led coalition.

“Too often weddings, funerals, hospitals, police stations and humanitarian convoys are being hit by the coalition warplanes,” Konashenkov said.

On Friday, at least 15 women lost their lives and scores of other civilians sustained injuries when US-led military aircraft targeted a Shia place of worship in the town of Daquq.

The attack came as nearly 30,000 Iraqi army soldiers, volunteer fighters and Kurdish Peshmerga forces are taking part in the the military operation to retake the strategic northern city of Mosul from Daesh Takfiri terrorists.

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