Russia Says 40 Syrian Fighters Killed in Militants’ Attack on Idlib

Up to 40 Syrian soldiers were killed, and 80 wounded in an attack by militants in Syria’s flashpoint Idlib region, Russia’s defence ministr said on Thursday

Militants set off car bombs and used heavy gunfire to storm army positions in Idlib, Syrian state news agency SANA reported.

The militant attack forced the army to redeploy and clashes were ongoing, SANA added. Russian news agency Interfax reported that 600 militants were participating in the onslaught, quoting Russian military sources.

Idlib is the last rebel-held swathe of territory in the country and hundreds of thousands of people in the area have fled in recent weeks amid heavy airstrikes by Russian and Syrian forces.

This is a developing story…