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| Syria-Lebanon-Iran |
| Russian military personnel in Syrian rises to 1,700 |
| 2015-09-22 |
| By Chris Covert Rantburg.com The number of Russian military personnel deployed to Syria has reached 1,700, consisting mainly of naval personnel, according to Russian language news accounts. According to a report in Regnum.ru, a Kommersant news report said a tweet by an unidentified individual associated with a private firm assisting the Russians in the port of Tartus places the number of naval personnel at 1,700. Current English language news accounts citing US government sources say the number of Russian naval infantry troops in the region is about 500, which including the logistical tail would equal a rifle battalion. Most of the activity associated with the buildup in Tartus is intended to provide a defense and to improve the base facilities to service Russian surface combatants such as destroyers and troop carriers, according to the regnum.ru report. Reports also say that some Russian combat troops were in Latakia, where an airfield the Russians use is located. One video shows a tank unit firing its main guns into a position in the hills, but little indication exists if the shooting was an exercise or actual combat. Russian military journalist Boris Rozhin remarked that the video was faked. A Syrian rebel group, reportedly Al-Nusra Dzhebhat, fired rocket artillery into Latakia last Saturday killing 14 and wounding 40. The rebel force fired 30 rockets and some "charged gas cylinders" into town, according to several Russian language news reports. A separate report which appeared in regnum.ru, said that the Syrian air force attacked positions of Al-Nusra Dzhebhat on Monday in response to the attack. The air raid, claims the report, "wiped out" a headquarters and killed 24 combatants near Zakhia. Chris Covert writes about foreign military issues for Rantburg.com. He can be reached at grurkka@gmail.com and on Twitter. |
| Posted by:badanov |