Mosul residents deny Isis presence in building hit by US airstrike that killed 105 civilians

Residents living in a neighbourhood in Mosul, Iraq, targeted by a US airstrike in March have rejected findings of a Pentagon probe into the attack.

The report claimed a US airstrike killed 105 civilians in Mosul when it targeted a house that, US officials said, had been rigged with explosives by Isis militants.

The Pentagon said the airstrike triggered secondary explosions due to the devices planted by Isis which caused the building to collapse.

The report also stated that US personnel "could not have predicted" that dozens of Mosul residents were in the building, thought to be used by Isis snipers to attack Iraqi forces.

However, residents in Mosul told news agency AP there were only civilians and no Isis fighters in the house targeted by the strike on 17 March.

The attack could be the largest single instance of civilian casualties confirmed by the US-led coalition in the nearly three-year-old campaign against Isis in Iraq.

NBC News reported that the deaths represent around 25% of all civilian deaths since the US air campaign was launched.

Isis seized Mosul in the summer of 2014. A coalition led by the US has been helping the Iraqi army in the fight against the terrorists since October 2014.

The Iraqi army, the Kurdistan Regional government and the US-led coalition are also involved in what is known as the Battle for Mosul: A joint military offensive that began in October 2016 and aims to retake control of the town.