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Iran Declines to Confirm Hit by Russian Federation Missiles

Russian diplomats, Ms. Zakharova said, have asked the United States to identify armed groups other than units of the Syrian Army that are fighting the Islamic State and that should be avoided in airstrikes, but she said they had received no answer.

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All of the fighting will only worsen the refugee crisis of people in the war-torn area fleeing into Europe.

The Russian defence ministry denied that any of the missiles had fallen short of their targets.

The new offensive was aimed at pushing an assortment of rebel groups, including the al-Qaeda linked Nusra Front and their more moderate Islamist allies, Ahrar al-Sham, out of high ground that threatens the rear of Latakia, Mr Assad’s coastal heartland.

“They shot cruise missiles from the Caspian sea without warning”, Carter said after North Atlantic Treaty Organisation defense talks in Brussels.

But an unnamed USA government source told Reuters that four missiles had crashed before reaching their targets.

The spokesman also said that Turkey was concerned about a possible migration wave from Syria due to the Russian air campaign against “opposition groups”. He claimed the missiles destroyed “all 11 intended targets” and were not “targeted at civilian areas”.

Russia is bombing the enemies of Bashar al-Assad, Syria’s brutal dictator.In reality, Russian air strikes on rebel forces may actually be helping ISIS by removing a few of their competition.

In the nearby village of Kafr Nabuda, rebel forces shot down a low-flying military helicopter, but it was unclear whether the aircraft was Syrian or Russian, said observatory chief Rami Abdel Rahman.

Carter reiterated his regret over the US strike in Kunduz, acknowledging a “full and transparent investigation” into the incident.

According to Russia’s Defense Ministry, the Russian warplanes’ equipment allows striking the IS throughout Syria with “absolute precision”.

Mr Wang and his opposite number in Russian Federation, Sergey Lavrov met at length last week and afterwards Mr Lavrov said the two countries are in “similar positions” on many domestic and global issues.

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Speaking at almost the same time, Syrian Deputy Foreign Minister Faisal Mekdad said, “Russia’s joining the struggle against terrorism on Syria’s territory will lead to changes in the region and the whole world”, in remarks relayed by Russia’s Tass news agency.

Iran Declines to Confirm Hit by Russian Federation Missiles