Alwaght- Russian forces in Syria downed an intrusive drone that was approaching Russia’s Hmeymim air base, a senior Russian military official said.
"On August 9, airspace control equipment of Russia’s Hmeymim air base detected an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV), launched from a territory, controlled by illegal armed groups, in the north of the Latakia governorate. The aerial target was shot down by air defense systems at a distance from the air base," the head of the Russian Center for Reconciliation of the opposing sides in Syria, Maj. Gen. Alexei Tsygankov, said.
"There was no injuries or damage. Russia’s Hmeymim air base operates as normal," he added.
According to earlier reports, Russian servicemen disabled more than 25 drones last month, heading toward the Hmeymim air base and carrying various types of ammunition.
Russia has been lending aerial support to Syria’s counter-terrorism operations since September 2015.
The US and its allies have been bombarding what they call ISIS positions inside Syria since September 2014 without any authorization from the Damascus government or a UN mandate.
While ISIS terrorists have been almost completely driven out of Syria by the Arab army with the help of Russian air power and allied forces, small pockets Takfiri terrorists from various armed cells still operate in the war-torn country. In an apparent effort to intimidate the Russian contingent in Latakia province, terrorists continue futile attempts to send drones towards the base, which Moscow defends with multi-layer anti-air capabilities.
