Russian Jets Strike Syrian Opposition-Held Bastion in Heaviest Strikes since Ceasefire

Smoke billows following a reported Russian airstrike on the western outskirts of the mostly opposition-held Syrian province of Idlib, on September 20, 2020. (Photo by Mohammed AL-RIFAI / AFP)
Smoke billows following a reported Russian airstrike on the western outskirts of the mostly opposition-held Syrian province of Idlib, on September 20, 2020. (Photo by Mohammed AL-RIFAI / AFP)
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Russian Jets Strike Syrian Opposition-Held Bastion in Heaviest Strikes since Ceasefire

Smoke billows following a reported Russian airstrike on the western outskirts of the mostly opposition-held Syrian province of Idlib, on September 20, 2020. (Photo by Mohammed AL-RIFAI / AFP)
Smoke billows following a reported Russian airstrike on the western outskirts of the mostly opposition-held Syrian province of Idlib, on September 20, 2020. (Photo by Mohammed AL-RIFAI / AFP)

Syrian opposition sources said Russian jets bombed northwestern Syria on Sunday in the most extensive strikes since a Turkish-Russian deal halted major fighting with a ceasefire nearly six months ago.

Witnesses said the warplanes struck the western outskirts of Idlib city and that there was heavy artillery shelling in the mountainous Jabal al Zawya region in southern Idlib from nearby Syrian army outposts. There were no immediate reports of casualties.

"These 30 raids are by far the heaviest strikes so far since the ceasefire deal," said Mohammed Rasheed, a former opposition official and a volunteer plane spotter whose network covers the
Russian air base in the western coastal province of Latakia.

Other tracking centers said Russian Sukhoi jets hit the Horsh area and Arab Said town, west of the city of Idlib.

Unidentified drones also hit two opposition-held towns in the Sahel al-Ghab plain, west of Hama province.

There has been no wide-scale aerial bombing since a March agreement ended a Russian-backed bombing campaign that displaced over a million people in the region which borders Turkey after months of fighting.



US Military Says it Killed 2 ISIS Operatives in Syria Airstrike

Guns and hand grenades surrendered by members of ousted Syrian President Bashar Assad's army and pro-government militias, are displayed in Damascus, Syria, Monday, Dec. 23, 2024. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla)
Guns and hand grenades surrendered by members of ousted Syrian President Bashar Assad's army and pro-government militias, are displayed in Damascus, Syria, Monday, Dec. 23, 2024. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla)
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US Military Says it Killed 2 ISIS Operatives in Syria Airstrike

Guns and hand grenades surrendered by members of ousted Syrian President Bashar Assad's army and pro-government militias, are displayed in Damascus, Syria, Monday, Dec. 23, 2024. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla)
Guns and hand grenades surrendered by members of ousted Syrian President Bashar Assad's army and pro-government militias, are displayed in Damascus, Syria, Monday, Dec. 23, 2024. (AP Photo/Hussein Malla)

The US military said on Monday it conducted an airstrike in Syria that killed two ISIS operatives and wounded one.

ISIS operatives were moving a truckload of weapons in Deir Ezzor Province, when they were targeted with the airstrike, US Central Command said in a statement on social media platform X.

Central Command said the area was formerly controlled by ex-President Bashar Assad’s regime and its Russian supporters.

Assad fled to Moscow after opposition forces seized control of Damascus earlier this month.