19 September 2016, 13:59 GMT
WASHINGTON (Sputnik) — The US-led coalition airstrike that killed dozens of Syrian soldiers was an accident and should not slow the US-Russian effort to cooperate against the Islamic State (Daesh), former US Air Force Deputy Chief of Staff for Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnasanice Lt. Gen. David Deptula told Sputnik on Monday.
"It is a very complex environment and it is difficult to ascertain who is doing what, and so it was an accident and it is unfortunate but we shouldn't let that get in the way of working together to get rid of the Islamic State," Deptula said.
On Saturday, aircraft of the anti-US coalition carried out four airstrikes against positions of the Syrian Army near Deir ez-Zor, leaving 62 personnel killed and some 100 wounded. The Pentagon said the airstrike was a mistake, with the intended target being Daesh forces in the area.
Deptula was the principal air attack coordinator for Operation Desert Storm in 1991, and currently serves as the dean of the US Air Force Association’s Mitchell Institute for Aerospace Studies.
