The prospect of Israeli troops advancing into densely populated residential areas of Gaza, where militants use civilians as human shields, evokes memories of the U.S.-led coalition’s fierce battles against the Islamic State group in Iraq and Syria.
Defense Secretary Lloyd Austin and his military leaders say the intense fighting and thousands of civilian deaths in Mosul and Raqqa are lessons to be learned as Israel prepares for a possible ground operation against Hamas.
“In our conversations with the Israeli side, … we emphasized the importance of reducing civilian casualties and thinking about things like security corridors,” Pentagon spokesman Patrick Ryder said Tuesday.
The United States can paint a grim picture of civilian deaths. During the eight-month siege of Mosul in 2016-2017, air, artillery and mortar strikes killed up to 10,000 people, including at least 3,200 civilians, according to the Associated Press.
Austin, the chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, General Charles Brown, and the head of the US Central Command, General Eric Kurilla, were in the region at the time and observed the events. They were well aware of attempts to create humanitarian corridors and decisions to suspend operations while civilians were warned to move elsewhere.
So, speaking with their Israeli counterparts almost daily, they share advice on how to fight in urban environments, reduce the threat of booby traps and roadside bombs, and protect innocent people while eliminating militants hiding in schools, mosques and homes.
The United States sent a team of military advisors to Israel, including Marine Corps Lt. Gen. James Glynn, to advise their Israeli counterparts on reducing civilian casualties in urban warfare.
During a visit to Tel Aviv last week, Austin recalled his experiences as head of the US Central Command during the first two years of the campaign to defeat the Islamic State. He spoke of lessons learned, including the realization that the world was watching these events, people familiar with the conversations said.
Austin has said publicly and privately that the Israeli military must take the safety of civilians into account when planning its operations, including the ground offensive in the Gaza Strip.
According to former head of US Central Command, retired General Joseph Votel, Israel faces a more complex and better-armed enemy than the Islamic State in Syria and Iraq.
He noted that the United States and its coalition allies had more time to prepare for the Mosul battle. At the same time, the coalition repeatedly suspended operations to meet with local tribal leaders and try to get civilians out of the line of fire.
