Posted on 08/19/16
| News Source: VIN
Beirut - The Russian military says two of its ships have launched cruise missiles at targets in Syria from the eastern Mediterranean Sea.
Russia’s Defense Ministry says the Serpukhov and the Zeleny Dol corvettes launched three long-range Kalibr cruise missiles on Friday at Syria’s al-Qaida branch, formerly known as the Nusra Front. The ministry says the missiles destroyed a command facility and a militant camp near the militant-held town of Daret Azzeh, along with a mine-making facility and a weapons facility in the province of Aleppo.
Russian warships in the past have launched cruise missiles at targets in Syria from both the Caspian Sea and the Mediterranean, a show of the navy’s long-range precision strike capability.
The cruise missile strikes have added an extra punch to the aerial campaign Russia has conducted since September in support of President Bashar Assad’s military.
The development comes after Russia this week began using Iranian territory to launch airstrikes in Syria, with Moscow’s bombers flying out of the Islamic Republic for three straight days to hit targets in the war-ravaged country.