ISIL kills Top Iranian Commander In Syria

U.S. President Barack Obama suggested that Russian airstrikes in Syria are a sign of the growing weakness of Russian leader Vladimir Putin in an interview on CBS News, of which an excerpt was released Friday.

The British-based Observatory said it was the biggest advance by Islamic State since it launched an offensive against rival rebels in Aleppo near the Turkish border in late August.

Moscow says it is targeting mainly Islamic State militants, but USA officials and Syrian rebels have said the strikes have hit rebel groups, as well, and are created to shore up Assad’s embattled government and troops.

Insurgent groups advanced against Assad’s forces earlier this year, putting pressure on his coastal heartland in the west of the country.

Islamic State are now within 2 km (1 mile) of government-held territory on Aleppo’s northern edge, the closest they have been to the city.

France’s Defense Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian said French warplanes bombed a training camp in Raqqa.

Control of Aleppo city is divided between rebel groups in the east, and government forces, bolstered by pro-regime militias, in the west.

In its surprise attack, the Islamic State, also known by the acronym ISIS, seized a string of villages from rebels in Aleppo province Friday.

The missile launches were in support of a major ground offensive by the Syrian army on several fronts in the war-torn country’s west.

Hamedani, a veteran of the 1980-88 Iran-Iraq war, was made deputy chief commander of the elite forces in 2005.

A fresh round of talks between the United States and Russian Federation on air strikes over Syria could take place as soon as this weekend, the Pentagon has said. “All our cruise missiles hit their target”, said spokesman Gen Igor Konashenkov.

General Hossein Hamedani was killed “during an advisory mission”, a Guards statement said.

Seeking to underline the dangers, US officials said four Russian cruise missiles fired from a warship in the Caspian Sea had crashed in Iran, which drew a swift denial from Russia.

North Atlantic Treaty Organisation Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg, meanwhile, this week said the military alliance was ready to defend Turkey against threats after violations of its airspace by Russian jets conducting the airstrikes against Syria.

“What is certain right now is that this is a new turning point in the conflict and there is no turning back”, says the paper.

The gains achieved by ISIS come as President Bashar al-Assad’s forces, backed by Hezbollah, Iran, and Russian Federation, have stepped up attacks against rebels in western Syria.