Three of the U.S. military’s top officials have told Congress that they realized within hours that a botched Aug. 29 drone strike killed innocent civilians—contradicting earlier military statements about what the government knew in the aftermath of the incident. “We knew the strike hit civilians within four to five hours after the strike occurred, and U.S. Central Command issued a press release saying that,” Central Command (CENTCOM) Commander Gen. Kenneth Frank McKenzie told members of the House Armed Services Committee (HASC) on Sept. 29, responding to questions from Rep. Trent Kelly (R-Miss.). Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin also said the Pentagon knew about civilian deaths within “several hours” of the strike, as did Gen. Mark Milley, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. However, the latter part of McKenzie’s statement is false. CENTCOM press releases following the drone strike don’t note civilian deaths. The first Aug. 29 CENTCOM press release regarding …
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