Russian warplanes took off on Tuesday from a base in Iran to target Islamic State fighters and other militants in Syria, the U.S. military confirmed, in a move widening Moscow’s bombing campaign as Syria’s five-year-long civil war drags on.
(FOX)- “As we understand, they hit three areas in Syria. One area has ISIS fighters in it, and we have hit there ourselves before. The other two areas do not have ISIS concentrations,” Col. Chris Garver, a Baghdad-based U.S. military spokesman, told Fox News.
Garver said the Russians bombed ISIS in central Syria near Dayr Az Zawr and conducted the two other strikes in northwest Syria near Aleppo, where rebels have been battling Syrian government forces loyal to President Bashar al-Assad.
Fox News has reported that Russia previously used Iranian bases to transfer supplies and refuel jets. This is not the first time Russia has used those bases.
The long-range bombers took off from near the Iranian city of Hamedan, around 175 miles southwest of Tehran.
Meanwhile, Syrian opposition activists said a wave of airstrikes on rebel-held parts of the northern city of Aleppo killed at least 15 civilians and wounded many others on Tuesday, but it was not clear whether the strikes were carried out by the Russian or Syrian government’s air force.