US says 90 per cent strikes not hitting IS or Al-Qaeda

Rebels on the ground and Western states have said Moscow’s air campaign, which has been combined with ground attacks by pro-government forces, have mainly targeted rebel groups not associated with Islamic State, including U.S.-trained fighters.

In Hama, regime forces seized Atshan village from opposition fighters including Islamists and Al-Qaeda affiliate Al-Nusra Front, state television and the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said.

One casualty of the fighting has been a senior commander of Iran’s Revolutionary Guards, General Hossein Hamedani.

And the Russian air strikes have raised questions whether and how the U.S. would protect Assad-opposing rebel groups it is working with, if they are hit by Russian bombs.

“We would not make any concessions in connection to our border security and air space security”, he said. The Observatory said the rebels advanced on a hill overlooking Atshan overnight.

There are also concerns about the accuracy of the weapons Russian Federation is using to target Syrian rebels.

North Atlantic Treaty Organisation diplomatic sources said Moscow had given no advance warning of the missile strikes which came as a complete surprise.

Last month, Iran granted permission for Russian planes to fly over its territory en route to Syria, Russian news agencies, as it and the Lebanese terror group Hezbollah were reportedly preparing for a new offensive in the war-torn country.

Other targets identified by the Russian ministry as having been struck in the past 24 hours included militants’ training sites in the Latakia and Idlib provinces.

Meanwhile, the US-led coalition said it carried out five strikes against IS in Syria and another 20 in Iraq.

Heavy fighting was also taking place in the al-Ghab plain in Hama province a natural barrier between areas controlled by Sunni Muslims and the Alawite sect to which Assad and many of his loyalists belong.

The US, which for 14 years has shown its military strength and hardware in the war in Afghanistan and the war in Iraq, now has the opportunity to watch the Russian military engagement.

“The discussions were professional and focused narrowly on the implementation of specific safety procedures”, said Pentagon press secretary Peter Cook in a statement”.