Russian long-range bombers have delivered a stinging blow to the remnants of the Daesh Takfiri terrorist group on the western bank of the Euphrates River, destroying the extremists’ command posts and killing scores of them in an airstrike.
Russia's Defense Ministry said in a statement on Saturday that six Tupolev-22M3 aircraft left an air base in Russia, and bombarded Daesh’s fortified areas, manpower and armored vehicles near Abbas town, which lies northwest of the recently-liberated al-Bukamal town and near the border with Iraq.
Surveillance equipment has confirmed that all of the designated targets had been hit, the statement added.
It noted that Sukhoi-30SM fighter jets, based at Russia-run Hmeimim air base southeast of Syria's western coastal city of Latakia, had escorted the bombers while they were in Syrian airspace, and that all the bombers had safely returned to their base.
On November 17, six Tupolev-22M3 bombers left an air base in Russia, crossed over the Iranian and Iraqi airspaces and carried out a massive airstrike against the Daesh positions near the town of Bukamal in Syria’s eastern province of Dayr al-Zawr.
The development came only two days after six Russian Tupolev Tu-22M3 bombers bombarded the Daesh outposts near Bukamal.
On November 4, TU-22m3 bombers flew from Russia across Iran and Iraq, and conducted airstrikes against the Daesh targets near Bukamal.
Russia's Defense Ministry said at the time that command centers and weapons depots were among the targets hit by the bombers.
Russia’s Kolpino submarine also launched six Kalibr cruise missiles from the Mediterranean Sea against the Daesh outposts in Bukamal on November 3.
Six Tupolev Tu-22M3 bombers launched a massive aerial assault against the designated terrorist targets near Bukamal on November 1, destroying fortified areas, arms and ammunition depots.
Since September 2015, Russia has been conducting aerial attacks against terrorist positions in Syria at a request from the Damascus government.
Backed by Russian air power, Syrian ground forces have managed to make numerous gains against terrorists on various fronts.