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A photo taken on October 27, 2019 shows the burnt van that Barakat Ahmad Barakat says he was in when it was targeted by U.S. forces the night of the raid on ISIS leader Baghdadi's compound. Omar Haj Kadour/AFP via Getty Images hide caption
A photo taken on October 27, 2019 shows the burnt van that Barakat Ahmad Barakat says he was in when it was targeted by U.S. forces the night of the raid on ISIS leader Baghdadi's compound.
Omar Haj Kadour/AFP via Getty ImagesEditor's note: This episode contains graphic descriptions of violence.
The U.S. military has consistently maintained that its troops didn't harm civilians during the 2019 raid on the Syrian hideout of ISIS founder Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, which lead to Baghdadi blowing himself up.
It stuck to that version of events even after NPR reported on claims from Syrians that civilians were killed and maimed by U.S. helicopter fire during the raid. The Pentagon claimed the men were enemy combatants.
NPR sued the Pentagon under the Freedom of Information Act to release documentation of the airstrikes, and obtained a redacted copy of the Defense Department's confidential 2020 report on the incident.
NPR's Daniel Estrin digs into the document, and finds that it reveals flaws in the Pentagon's conclusion.
His investigation, in English and Arabic, includes declassified Pentagon documents, photos, maps and videos.
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This episode was produced by Connor Donevan. It was edited by Larry Kaplow, Nishant Dahiya and Jeanette Woods. Our executive producer is Sami Yenigun.
