The US military killed a dozen civilians and injured five others in foreign operations in 2021, according to the Defense Department's annual report on civilian casualties released on Tuesday.

“[The Defense Department] assesses that there were approximately 12 civilians killed and approximately 5 civilians injured during 2021 as a result of US military operations,” the report said.

The Defense Department received four credible reports of civilian casualty incidents in Afghanistan in 2021, resulting in 12 deaths and two injuries, according to the report.

The US withdrew its occupation forces from Afghanistan in August 2021 at the order of President Joe Biden, after the Taliban took over the country.

The US Africa Command reported that three civilians were injured as the result of an airstrike in Somalia in January as well, the report said.

The Defense Department continues to assess three reports of civilian casualty incidents in Iraq and Syria as part of Combined Joint Task Force - Operation Inherent Resolve, the report also said.

The US responds to civilian casualty incidents by apologizing, providing medical care, or making payments; one such payment was made in 2021 for an incident in Herat, Afghanistan, in January, according to the report.

US government assessments may differ from those of non-governmental organizations and other groups due to differences in methodology, according to the report.

A new #Pentagon report highlights the increase of sexual assault in the ranks of the #US army, a trend that's worrying, to say the least, to the government and the military institution. pic.twitter.com/m5ppORXF2B

— Al Mayadeen English (@MayadeenEnglish) September 11, 2022

Last week, according to warnings relayed by Russia’s Defense Ministry, US-supported militants are in the works of carrying out a false-flag attack against civilians in the strategic Al-Tanf region, located near the borders of Iraq and Jordan, to incriminate Syrian government forces.

Deputy head of the Russian Reconciliation Center for Syria, Major General Oleg Yegorov, stated via a RIA Novosti report that the center received intel regarding members of the Maghawir Al-Thawra terrorist group who are readying to launch an attack that would point the blame on Syrian army troops for indiscriminate strikes on civilian infrastructure and residential areas. 

This comes after a Defense Department survey published on September 2 that it began to collect data in 2015. Nearly 36,000 service members said they had experienced unwanted sexual contact, a sharp increase over the 20,500 victims among active-duty personnel found in 2018, the last time the survey was conducted. 

About one in 12 women on active duty (8.4%) reported having been assaulted or subjected to an assault attempt in the last year, while figures for men doubled to 1.5%, the Pentagon’s Annual Report on Sexual Assault in the Military for 2021 reports.