“Any professional knows that during these operations we always fix the target before and after impact”.
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Newspapers in Syria and its ally Iran are naturally delighted, since Russia’s avowed target is the militant group Islamic State (IS).
One senior administration official speaking to Reuters insisted there were “no surprises” and that lawmakers were “comfortable” with the intelligence they received leading up the Russian intervention. The officials said it’s unclear whether the errant missiles, launched from Russian ships in the Caspian Sea, caused any significant damage in Iran.
Gen. Igor Konashenkov, denied that any Russian missiles had missed their targets and landed in Iran.
Russian Federation has been conducting air strikes in Syria in defence of the embattled regime of President Bashar al-Assad since September 30.
The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the 20 explosions killed 14 IS fighters and wounded more than 20.
Their talks come after Mr Fallon announced plans for the deployment of around 100 British troops in to the Baltic States of Latvia, Lithuania and Estonia as part of a “more persistent presence” by North Atlantic Treaty Organisation forces in eastern Europe. The “Kaliber” cruise missiles are believed to be Russia’s newest design and was reportedly their first use in combat.
Meanwhile, France’s defense minister says the country’s air force has launched a second air strike overnight in Syria against an Islamic State training camp.
A Syrian military source said Thursday the Russian strikes had helped regime forces take back territory in an area that has been the focus of a months-long offensive by a rebel alliance, including Al-Nusra. He said new fighting units, including one called the Fourth Assault Corps, had been set up to wage the campaign and the army now held the military initiative.
The Gulf official also added that four years after the start of the Syrian conflict and after thousands of deaths, neither the West nor the Gulf states have a strategy for resolving it. He said that there is a need for clearer USA leadership and that the worst thing the West can do at the moment is to accept a compromise with Assad, even for a limited period of time.
U.S. President Barack Obama suggested that Russian airstrikes in Syria are a sign of the growing weakness of Russian leader Vladimir Putin in an interview on CBS News, of which an excerpt was released Friday.
Russian Federation says the airstrikes it began last week are directed against the Islamic State group, as well as al-Qaida’s Syrian affiliates.
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Iran’s defense ministry dismissed the claim as well, also calling it psychological war.
