ISIS claims US-led air strikes kill 40 in militant pocket in Syria

At least 40 people, mostly women and children were killed on Saturday in the latest wave of US-led coalition air strikes against the last remaining ISIS-held pocket in Syria near the border with Iraq, the militants and some local residents said.

Asked about reports of air strikes in the Buqan area near Hajin on the eastern banks of the Euphrates River on Saturday, the coalition’s spokesman confirmed that there were strikes but denied civilian casualties.

Col Sean Ryan, the coalition spokesman, said "the coalition takes great measures to identify and strike appropriate ISIS targets in order to avoid non-combatant casualties".

ISIS's Amaq news agency quoted a medical source as saying 40 people had been killed, a claim that was also made by Syrian state media.

Relatives of families from the area and Syrian state media said dozens of people have been killed in the last two weeks from US coalition air strikes in Hajin and areas around it.

Just more than a week ago the Syrian government protested to the United Nations about an air strike by the US-led coalition against ISIS, which it said killed 26 civilians in Hajin.

The fighting is the latest phase of efforts by the coalition and the Syrian Democratic Forces to clear ISIS from its last foothold east of the Euphrates River after last year's defeat of the militants in Raqqa, its Syrian headquarters.