Airstrikes in Syria after Russian patrol hit by massive bomb

Russia has been conducting joint patrols with Turkey along the M4 highway in Syria after a ceasefire earlier this year.

By SETH J. FRANTZMAN
A man rides a motorbike past damaged buildings in the rebel-held town of Nairab (photo credit: REUTERS)
A man rides a motorbike past damaged buildings in the rebel-held town of Nairab
(photo credit: REUTERS)
Russia launched airstrikes in northern Syria after a bombing that targeted a Russian military patrol on Tuesday, locals said. The airstrikes occurred in Latakia province in northwestern Syria.
Moscow has been conducting joint patrols with Ankara along the M4 highway in Syria after a ceasefire earlier this year. Russia and Turkey back opposite sides in Syria, but they tend to work together.
Russia says it is backing the Syrian regime’s battle against “terrorists.” It has worked to limit humanitarian aid to opposition-controlled areas in the war-torn country.

Pro-government social-media users following Syria claimed the explosion happened in an area controlled by “jihadists” linked to Hurras al-Din, which is affiliated with al-Qaeda. ISIS leader Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi was found in a Hurras al-Din area last October; the US has targeted the group in the past.
Video shows what looks like a massive explosion near the Russian patrol. Three Russians were wounded, Syrians reported. The numbers could increase if more details are revealed.
The explosion is the largest so far to target a Russian patrol. Russia has said its base in Khmeimim in Syria has recently been attacked by drones, allegedly flown by Syrian rebel and extremist groups in Idlib.
The attack on the patrol convoy is part of rising tensions in Syria, with similar patrols carried out by US forces in eastern Syria. They have been increasingly harassed by pro-Syrian regime activists.
The Syrian regime and Russia would like an excuse to retaliate in Idlib and continue the offensive they launched in January and February. That offensive stopped after hundreds of thousands of people fled toward Turkey, which flooded Idlib with tanks and troops.
Turkish troops were killed in Syrian regime shelling, and Turkey retaliated with drone airstrikes. A ceasefire was agreed to between Turkey and Russia on March 5. However, groups such as Hurras al-Din and Hayat Tahrir al-Sham have continued to be outside the ceasefire, and Russia reserves the right to strike them.
The explosion has major ramifications for Russia’s joint patrols. Moscow could ignore it and prefer to keep casualties quiet. But it could also play it up and accuse Turkey of not keeping extremist groups in check, using it as an excuse to target groups throughout Idlib.


Related Tags
Idlib