The United States struck at the Russian-controlled territory of Syria: the versions of Moscow and Washington

The US-led February 8 coalition struck at pro-government forces in Syria, according to US media sources, this led to the death of Russian mercenaries.

Фото: Depositphotos

The US military called it a “defensive” strike, a response to the attack on the headquarters of the rebels, in which the coalition advisers were located, but the Russian Defense Ministry put forward its version of events, writes with the BBC.

In the headquarters of the operation Inherent Resolve said the strike was in response to an “unprovoked attack” by supporters of Bashar al-Assad on the headquarters of the Syrian Democratic Forces.

Information on the number of dead and injured in the incident is controversial. American media, citing their sources, reported that about 100 pro-government fighters were killed as a result of coalition attacks.

According to the Syrian government news agency SANA, "several" militia members fighting Islamic State militants were killed and injured.

The Russian Ministry of Defense, in turn, reported that as a result of coalition strikes, 25 Syrian militias were injured; there was no question of those killed.

US-led version of the international coalition

According to statement international coalition, the “unprovoked attack” occurred on February 7, eight kilometers east of the agreed conflict prevention line on the Euphrates River, where coalition troops were present along with SDF fighters as advisers, assistants and accompanying forces.

“To protect coalition and partner forces, the coalition conducted strikes against attacking forces to repel an act of aggression against partners engaged in the fight against the Islamic State,” the coalition said.

According to representatives of the United States, the US military notified the Russian side in advance of plans to strike at the area where pro-government forces were stationed.

“Representatives of the coalition maintained contact with the Russian authorities before, during and after the attack of the forces supporting the regime. The Russian side has assured the coalition that it will not clash with nearby coalition forces, ”the US military said.

Pentagon spokesman Dana White called the coalition's blow to the pro-government forces self-defense, noting that the United States is not looking for a conflict with the Syrian government.

Russian version

According to the Russian Ministry of Defense, everything was the other way around: the attack was not carried out by US-backed SDF fighters, but by Syrian militias who were conducting an operation against an Islamic State sleeper cell in the area of ​​the former El-Isba oil refinery.

“While carrying out the task, the militias came under sudden fire from mortars and MLRS, after which they were attacked by helicopters of the US-led international coalition,” the Russian Ministry of Defense said.

At the same time, the ministry stressed that the militia, which was hit by the coalition, did not coordinate their operation with the command of the Russian task force.

“The incident once again demonstrated that the true goal of the continued illegal presence of US forces in Syria is no longer the fight against the international terrorist group ISIS, but the seizure and retention of economic assets under its control,” the Russian Ministry of Defense said in a statement.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Russia gave a more reserved comment.

“Moscow has a lot of questions in connection with what happened, including regarding the version of events presented by the American side,” said ministry official Maria Zakharova.

Russia's permanent representative to the UN, Vasily Nebenzya, said that Moscow would ask the American delegation to explain the blow in Deir ez-Zor during a closed meeting of the UN Security Council.

Dead Russians

At the same time, according to sources CBS in the Pentagon, in Deir ez-Zor, Russian mercenaries hit an airstrike of the international coalition.

If so, then this will be the first time that the Americans killed Russians in Syria during an air strike.

According to sources, we are talking about mercenaries from Russia involved in a military conflict on the side of government forces. According to one source, Russian mercenaries in Syria control oil fields in the Euphrates region.

According to lawyer Mark Feigin, members of the tactical units of the Russian private military company (PMC) Wagner were killed during the strike.

“A person communicating with people from Wagner reported that the number of dead PMC contract soldiers in the Euphrates Valley in Syria has reached 215 people. We approached the Kurdish fortified area, deployed artillery, fired a salvo and were immediately covered by the Americans,” Feigin wrote on his microblog Twitter.

Photo: Twitter / @ FeyginMark

The existence of the Wagner PMC became known in October 2016. The company included former employees of the “Slavic Corps” that fought in Syria, writes RBC.

The fighters were well paid and armed. However, in the 2017 year, they began to issue old weapons, and also reduced wages, which previously amounted to 240 thousand rubles ($ 4 110) per month.

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