The independent investigation into the attack and its aftermath was commissioned by Defence and at the request of the House of Representatives.
The commission concluded that during the attack on the ISIS target (sheds with (suicide) bomb cars) in Hawija, a large amount of explosives went unnoticed by the intelligence services. At least 70 civilian casualties occurred.
The investigative report addresses the way in which accountability was provided regarding this weapon deployment. From the decision-making about the deployment and the organization of the mission to the accountability towards the House of Representatives, mistakes were made. The cabinet finds the conclusions drawn by the commission to be strong and painful. In line with predecessors, the cabinet therefore offers apologies again, not only for incorrectly and incompletely informing the House of Representatives, but also for the fact that it took so long for all information to become available.
Measures
In a war with an aggressor like ISIS, there is always loss and damage, but there is a responsibility on Defence to prevent this as much as possible. Defence has already taken various steps in recent years. At the same time, the cabinet acknowledges that this development is still ongoing. This report helps the cabinet to take additional steps based on new insights.
For instance, the Netherlands is working on a better intelligence position during missions and striving for more transparency. It is also being considered whether more information can be provided about Dutch weapon deployment during missions. Additionally, efforts are being made to further improve the information management. Defence is also willing to inventory whether it is possible to allocate additional resources for supplementary projects that can help the community in Hawija in general. In consultation with local authorities, it will be determined whether and how these resources can be deployed.
Operation Inherent Resolve
In January 2014, ISIS rapidly advanced in Iraq and Syria. The terrorist group spread fear and imposed strict Salafist rules. The Iraqi government requested support from the international community for the war against the terrorist group. This led to OIR. The Netherlands contributed twice to the air campaign of the operation. In total, Dutch F-16s carried out approximately 3,000 missions. More than 2,100 times weapons were deployed. In this way, the Netherlands made an important contribution to combating ISIS.