Dozens of terrorists killed in Russian and Syrian airstrikes – media

Russian and Syrian warplanes have carried out airstrikes targeting terrorist forces in the northeast part of Homs province, killing dozens of militants, the state-run SANA news agency has said.

The large-scale fighting in Syria erupted last week after several terrorist groups, spearheaded by Hayat Tahrir-al-Sham (HTS), an offshoot of Jabhat al-Nusra, launched a surprise offensive against government forces. The jihadists have made rapid progress, particularly in Aleppo province, and the Syrian army has withdrawn from the city of Hama. However, the Damascus government has received support from Russian warplanes stationed in the country.

In a post on Telegram on Saturday, the outlet said, citing a military source, that the joint “concentrated” bombardment targeted clusters of terrorists in the Homs countryside. The attacks killed “dozens” of jihadists and destroyed their vehicles and equipment, the report said, without providing the exact tally.

According to SANA, Syrian forces operating in Hama and Homs also carried out “intensive artillery and missile fire” on the militants and their supply lines, “scoring direct hits.”

The Syrian military has also announced that its troops operating in the Daraa and Suwayda regions in the south of the country have been redeployed, and “established a strong and cohesive defensive cordon” to repel terrorist attacks on checkpoints. The military described the raids as attempts to divert Damascus’ attention from Homs and Hama.