Terrorists Planning Kamikaze Drone Attack on Russian Base in Syria: Moscow
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – The deputy director of the Russian Ministry of Defense's Center for Reconciliation in Syria said terrorists in the Arab country are preparing a long-range drone attack against the Khmeimim Air Base.
"According to information received by the (Center for Reconciliation), militants from the Jahbat al-Nusra and the Turkistan Islamic Party are planning an attack on the Khmeimim Air Base using strike UAVs and kamikaze drones," Major General Oleg Yegorov said at a briefing Friday, Sputnik reported.
Russia operates two military facilities in Syria - the naval facility in Tartus and the Khmeimim Air Base in Latakia Governorate. Khmeimim has come under terrorist fire repeatedly since its creation in 2015.
The Russian officer said that a large number of drones intended for use in the attack had been assembled near Jisr ash-Shughur, a city in northwest Syria occupied by Nusra and the TIP militants, with some of the UAV having a range of up to 70 km.
According to the Russian ministry's information, the terrorists likely plan to use some of the drones to try to divert the attention of Russian air defenses in order to strike at the base.
Between 2015 and 2017, the Russian air grouping at Khmeimim proved instrumental in assisting Syrian military forces and their allies in freeing wide swathes of Syria from a cacophony of US, Persian Gulf states and Turkish-backed terrorist groups and rebels attempting to overthrow the Syrian government.
