UPDATE - US airstrikes kill hundreds near Syria's Raqqah

ADDS COALITION COMMENTS

By Halit Suleyman

ALEPPO, Syria (AA) – Hundreds of Syrian civilians were reportedly killed in two U.S.-led coalition airstrikes in northern Raqqah province, according to local sources who spoke to Anadolu Agency.

The first airstrike targeted a school housing displaced people late Monday in the town of Mansura, located 30 kilometers (19 miles) west of Raqqah on the shores of Euphrates River, sources said, requesting anonymity due to restrictions on speaking to the media.

Although the school is located in a Daesh-held area, the sources said there was no presence of the militants in the area.

Meanwhile, local sources said 40 others were killed in another U.S.-led coalition strike on Monday in al-Tabqah, west of Raqqah.

Mostly women and children were killed in the attack.

Anti-Daesh coalition spokesman U.S. Army Col. Joe Scrocca said he was unable to confirm the strike on the school was a coalition action but confirmed the coalition carried out strikes in the area.

"We have not been able to look at all the evidence to determine whether that was one of our strikes or not," he said.

Scrocca said he would not put it past Daesh "to blow up a school or something.

"We see them targeting civilians all the time," he said.

Daesh-held Raqqah and its surroundings lack Internet connections, hindering efforts to deliver images or videos to mainstream media.

* Anadolu Agency Washington Correspondent Michael Hernandez contributed to this report