Russia hits IS 'capital', rebel-held towns in Syria

At least 12 members of the Islamic State group have been killed in Russia's first air strikes on the extremist faction's main Syrian bastion, a monitoring group said.

Russian aerial attacks also targeted the Army of Conquest, the most powerful Islamist coalition taking on Syrian regime forces in the country's northwest, a security source on the ground said.

Russia's defence ministry confirmed it had carried out strikes on Raqa province on Thursday, as well as raids on the provinces of Aleppo in the north, Idlib in the northwest, and Hama in the centre.

The strikes are the first time Russia has targeted IS's stronghold in Raqa province, the de facto Syrian capital of its self-styled "caliphate."

In a statement, Russia's defence ministry said Su-34 planes struck "an IS training camp near the village of Maadan Jadid," 70 km (45 miles) east of Raqa city, and "a camouflaged command post at Kasrat Faraj, southwest of Raqa."

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said those strikes had killed at least a dozen IS fighters.

"Last night, Russian strikes on the western edges of Raqa city, and near the Tabqa military airport, killed 12 IS jihadists," Observatory head Rami Abdel Rahman said on Friday.

He said their bodies were transported to a hospital in the province.

Activists and residents in Raqa said IS had canceled Friday prayers and emptied mosques in the city in fear of additional Russian strikes.

 

- Strikes on Hama, Idlib, Aleppo -

 

Moscow's defence ministry said Friday that its war planes had "conducted 18 sorties on 12 positions held by the Islamic State terrorist group in Syria" since Thursday.

The statement said Russian raids destroyed "a command post and communications centre" held by IS in Daret Ezza in Aleppo province. They are Russia's first strikes on the province, which borders Turkey to the north.

The ministry said its raids had also "completely destroyed" bunkers and weapons depots in Maaret al-Numan and Habeet in Idlib province.

Russian aerial attacks also struck "an IS command post" in Kafr Zeita in Hama province.

According to the Observatory, none of these areas are controlled by IS. Kafr Zeita is held by Islamist rebels, while the areas in Idlib and Aleppo are held by a jihadist group that rivals IS, Al-Qaeda's Syrian affiliate Al-Nusra Front.

Abdel Rahman had told AFP that seven civilians, including two children, were killed in Russian air attacks on Idlib province late Thursday.

According to several military sources as well as the Observatory, Russia continued its air strikes in several Syrian provinces on Friday.

A security source said that "Russian planes conducted several strikes on military positions and command centres held by the Army of Conquest in Jisr al-Shughur... and Jabal al-Zawiya in Idlib."

The Army of Conquest is fiercely opposed to both the regime of Bashar al-Assad and to IS.

Headed by Al-Nusra, it controls all of Idlib province and has advanced on the Assad bastion province of Latakia further west.

And a Syrian military source told AFP that Russian strikes on Friday targeted an ancient Christian town in Homs province seized by IS on August 5.

"Russian warplanes struck Al-Qaryatain this morning," the source said.

Al-Qaryatain lies near the historic Syrian city of Palmyra, which IS overran in May and which the Syrian army has tried hard to retake.

The Observatory also said Russian air strikes had targeted Latamina in Hama province on Friday.

The latest strikes came as US and other officials expressed concern that the Russian air force is concentrating its attacks on groups opposed to the embattled regime of Bashar al-Assad, instead of specifically on IS.

But Moscow insists it is targeting the Islamic State group and "other terrorist groups."