According to local sources, Russian airstrikes have expanded into the provinces of Hama and Latakia, as well as other rebel-held areas in the northern countryside of Homs.
These airstrikes continue to target areas held by Syrian rebels, including Syrian al-Qaeda affiliate Jabhat al-Nusra, hardline Islamist Ahrar al-Sham, Western-backed TOW anti-tank missile recipients, and a number of other local rebel groups.
The airstrikes signal Russian intentions to assist in the Syrian regime's war effort at large, rather than securing the regime's coastal heartland of Latakia and Tartous.
Notably, the nearest positions held by ISIS are over 55 km from the areas targeted by the Russian airstrikes. No Russian airstrikes have yet been reported against ISIS’s positions in Syria.
Russia’s foreign ministry accused international media of conducting information warfare by reporting civilian casualties from Russian airstrikes in Syria.
As Russian involvement in Syria continues to expand, Russian disinformation will come in direct conflict with the situation reported by ground forces inside Syria. In this instance, despite claims by Syrian sources that Russian airstrikes are exclusively targeting Jabhat al-Nusra and rebel locations, Russian officials claim that the airstrikes are only targeting ISIS in Syria.
Before a vote in Russia’s upper house of parliament unanimously authorized President Vladimir Putin to conduct military operations in Syria, the head of President Putin’s administration stated that the military objective of the operation was “exclusively” to provide air support to the Syrian government forces in combatting ISIS.
Shortly after the vote, Russia’s Ministry of Defense acknowledged the start the Russian air campaign, which it claimed involved “precision airstrikes on Islamic State land-based targets in Syria.”
Russia’s defense minister Sergey Shoygu also told members of the Russian-led Collective Security Treaty Organization (CSTO) alliance that the air campaign would consist of Russian air strikes against ISIS’s military equipment, lines of communication, vehicles, weapons caches, and oil infrastructure in Syria.
Sources consulted include: social media accounts of local Syrian activists and Russian news agencies such as TASS, Sputnik, Interfax, and RIA Novosti.
SEE ALSO: Putin just created 'new rules of the game' in Syria
Join the conversation about this story »
NOW WATCH: 11 game-changing military planes from the last 15 years