Russia airstrikes kill two IS commanders
A Russian Su-24 front-line bomber jet takes off at Latakia airport, Syria. © Dmitriy Vinogradov / RIA Novosti
(VOVworld) - Russian air forces carried out 67 sorties, striking 60 separate targets in northern Syria in the past 24 hours, the Russian Defense Ministry reported. Two senior Islamic State field commanders are reportedly among some 300 militants killed in the strikes. Deputy chief of staff, Lieutenant-General Igor Makushev, said in a Moscow media briefing that drone footage verified that a precision hit destroyed the headquarters of Liwa-al-Haqq, an Islamist group, which has been fighting the government of Bashar Assad since 2012. Russia said that a radio intercept confirmed the deaths of 200 fighters, and two commanders, who Makushev said belonged to Islamic State.