Russian efforts “will be synchronized with the actions of the Syrian army on the ground and the actions of our air force will effectively support the offensive operation of the Syrian army,” Putin said in televised comments.
However, a military source told AFP that Syria’s army and pro-regime forces have already launched a major ground operation on Wednesday in Hama province backed by air support from Russian warplanes.
“The Syrian army and allied forces began a ground operation in the northern parts of Hama province (central Syria)... with fire cover from the Russian air force,” the source said.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a British-based group which tracks the conflict via a network of sources within the country also reported Wednesday that Russia and Syria carried out what appeared to be the first major coordinated assaults on Syrian insurgents.
Russia’s air campaign in Syria, at a time when relations with the West are at a post-Cold War low over Ukraine, has caught Washington and its allies on the back foot and risks an incident between Russian and U.S. warplanes, now operating in the same country for the first time since World War Two.
On Wednesday, an aide to President Francois Hollande said the French leader did not suggest forming an alliance between Assad’s forces and the moderate opposition Free Syrian Army, contradicting comments by made by Putin.
“The president spoke of the necessary presence of the Syrian opposition around a future negotiating table. The rest is not a French idea,” a member of Hollande’s entourage told reporters during a visit to Strasbourg.
Russian warships strike ISIS
Four Russian warships on Wednesday also struck at ISIS targets in Syria with cruise missiles, as Moscow ramps up its military campaign, Putin was told by his defence minister.
“In addition to the airforce, four warships of the Caspian flotilla have been involved,” defence minister Sergei Shoigu said, adding that the warships carried out 26 cruise missile strikes against 11 targets.
Shoigu also said the “strikes have hit 112 targets from September 30 until today.” He added: “The intensity of the strikes is increasing.”
Earlier Wednesday, the Observatory said a wave of Russian air strikes in western Syria was being accompanied by a ground assault on at least four insurgent positions...
alarabiya.net
7/10/15
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Related:
Russian Defense Ministry Releases Video of Cruise Missile Strikes on ISIL Targets
Syrian regime launches ground assault 'backed by Russian air strikes', monitor says
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Mit Rückendeckung durch russische Kampfjets haben syrische Truppen mit einer Bodenoffensive gegen Rebellen begonnen. Erstmals setzte Russland auch Marschflugkörper ein...
ReplyDeleteEine Woche nach Beginn der russischen Luftangriffe hat das syrische Regime mit Hilfe aus Moskau eine Bodenoffensive gegen Rebellen begonnen. Die Gefechte nördlich der Stadt Hama seien die heftigsten seit Monaten, erklärte die Syrische Beobachtungsstelle für Menschenrechte. Russische Jets hätten in den Provinzen Hama und Idlib fast 40 Ziele bombardiert. Die Operation richtet sich gegen ein Rebellenbündnis, das sowohl das Regime als auch die Terrormiliz Islamischer Staat (IS) bekämpft......n24.de
7/10/15