Islamic State fighters are using children as human shields to deter airstrikes from the U.S. and the Iraqi Security Forces, BBC News reports.
BBC News reporters accompanying the Iraqi Security Forces on a mission over ISIS-held areas of Mosul saw several examples of ISIS fighters ferrying children around with them. The practice is one of several methods used by ISIS to shield themselves from airstrikes.
ISIS terrorists are also forcing civilians in their capital of Raqqa to don their garb in order to confused surveillance and strike aircraft. The group has now encircled the entire city of Raqqa with land mines and checkpoints, and is also forcing residents to camp out in tents in the middle of the street.
ISIS has put tarps up above streets to allow for freedom of movement, and are heavily booby trapping the entire city. The preparations also include ferreting European fighters to safer locations, so they may be sent abroad to carry out terrorist operations if the caliphate falls.
In some cases the terrorist group is moving past using civilians as human shields, and is baiting the U.S. into striking them. The group knows the western press focuses heavily on civilian casualty accusations and does as much as possible to amplify these reports.
ISIS’s brutal tactic involves putting ISIS snipers on the roof of a building, and then herding civilians into the basement. These snipers know their fate and lure the Iraqi Security Forces into requesting air support from the U.S. and its allies.“It’s like a trap,” a Mosul government official told the Los Angeles Times.
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