Russian Air Force strikes Turkish troops in Idlib

Turkish forces and Syrian opposition troops launched a military operation on Thursday, February 20, in Syria's southeastern Idlib province against the army of Bashar al-Assad, local media reported. The offensive targets the positions of the Syrian troops, which liberated eastern regions of Idlib in February. Turkish troops support the artillery offensive of anti-government forces. The Russian aviation struck the attackers. After a fierce battle, the Syrian opposition units, with the support of the Turkish troops, seized the village of Nairab from the Syrian forces. This settlement is located on M4 motorway, about ten kilometers southeast of the provincial capital, the city of the same name, Idlib. The offensive also targets the city of Saraqib, which was captured by the Syrian troops on February 5. According to the information received, a tank and an armored vehicle of the Syrian troops were destroyed, another tank was captured during the offensive. The Russian military reported that the Turkish armed forces supported the attack of the militants to the southeast of Idlib, "which allowed terrorists to break through the defenses of the Syrian army." Representatives of the Center for Reconciliation of the Warring Parties of the Russian Ministry of Defense in Syria pointed out that four Syrian soldiers were wounded in the shelling. Russian bomber aircraft in northern Syria "destroyed militants' armored vehicles", as the latter were conducting an attack with the support of the Turkish forces. "In order to prevent the illegal armed groups from moving deeper into Syrian territory, at the request of the Syrian command, the Su-24 aircraft of the Russian Air Force struck the terrorists," a representative of the center said.