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VIDEO: What is a 'double-tap' strike?

'Double-tap' strikes intentionally targeting rescue workers have become increasingly common in modern warfare
Members of the Syria Civil Defence rescue children after what activists said was an air strike by forces loyal to Syria's President Bashar al-Assad in Aleppo, Syria (Reuters)
Par Islam El

"Double-tap" strikes are becoming increasingly common in modern warfare.

The controversial military tactic is defined by armed drones or war planes attacking a site and then returning to attack the same area again as people are carrying out rescue work.

Pro-government forces in Syria, the Saudi-led colaition in Yemen, and Israeli operations in Gaza have all come under fire for reportedly intentionally targeting civilians and first-responders attending to the injured.

Christof Heyns, the former UN special rapporteur on extrajudicial killings told a meeting in Geneva in 2012 that "if civilian ‘rescuers’ are indeed being intentionally targeted, there is no doubt about the law: those strikes are a war crime."

The Saudi-led coalition is facing international outcry after an alleged "double-tap" air strike killed 140 people and left 534 people wounded in Yemen.

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