Three Russian Servicemen Killed by Terrorists in Syria

TEHRAN (defapress)- Three Russian servicemen went missing in Syria in late February after being attacked by terrorists, the Russian Defense Ministry said in a statement on Monday, adding that the deaths of all three servicemen had been confirmed.

News ID: 76426

Date: 26 March 2019 - 14:03

"In late February, three Russian servicemen got ambushed by a group of militants while returning by car after the delivery of humanitarian aid to one of the settlements in the province of Deir Ezzur in the daytime. The Russian servicemen went missing after a fighting that took place", the statement said, Sputnik reported.

"As a result of a series of special measures, the militants responsible for the attack on the [servicemen's] vehicle have been identified and the deaths of three Russian servicemen in fighting in late February have been confirmed", the statement read further.

According to the Russian Defense Ministry, an armed gang involved in the attack on a vehicle with Russian servicemen in Syria in late February has been eliminated.

"As a result of a joint operation of the Russian Aerospace Forces and special forces, an armed gang, consisting of over 30 militants, that was involved in the attack on a vehicle with Russian servicemen has been eliminated", the statement noted.

"The bodies of the killed servicemen have been delivered to the Russian Federation," the statement added.

The Russian military carries out regular humanitarian operations across Syria and assists Damascus with the return of refugees. When the war in the country was still in its most active phase, Moscow was also assisting Syrian authorities in the settlement of the armed conflict through military support for the government forces.

After regaining most of the territories seized by terrorists, the Syrian government is now focused on creating favorable conditions for repatriating refugees. Moscow is assisting Damascus in this process, along with providing humanitarian aid to civilians and being a guarantor of the ceasefire.

Syria has been engulfed in a war since 2011, with government forces fighting numerous opposition factions and terrorist groups. The conflict has significantly worsened the humanitarian situation in the Arab republic and forced millions of people to leave their place of permanent residence or even flee the country.

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