Don’t let Islamic State slip the noose in Syria
As Russia beefs up its offensive in Syria, the situation there looks promising, but it’s time for Moscow and Washington to cooperate in a final push to eliminate the Islamic State.
MOSCOW — Over the past few weeks, Russia has increased its air offensive to support the Syrian army's advance against the Islamic State (IS) in Deir ez-Zor. Russia’s Defense Ministry even proclaimed that the civil war in Syria is “practically over.”
Terrorists have been separated from the opposition, and de-escalation zones have been established. Moscow largely credits itself for both developments, which enable Russia to pursue its Syria campaign on two paths: diplomacy with the regime’s opposition at talks in Geneva and Astana, Kazakhstan, and more airstrikes on IS. That doesn’t necessarily mean Moscow won’t occasionally take aim at the US-backed opposition forces if it feels the Syrian army could use some help. But the recent offensive on IS has been remarkable from military and political perspectives.
These are the remarkable military aspects. On Sept. 8, the Russian Defense Ministry announced it had killed 40 IS militants, including four influential commanders. Among them were Gulmurod Khalimov, known as the IS “minister of war,” and Abu Muhammad al-Shimali, the “sharif of Deir ez-Zor.”
In a rare revelation for the Russian military, the Defense Ministry said it had received information about a coming gathering of IS warlords, who were allegedly there to discuss “urgent response measures” to the Syrian army’s advances on Deir ez-Zor. Russia's Kommersant newspaper, referring to its own sources, said Iranian intelligence confirmed the information before the Russian military commanded a Khmeimim-stationed Su-34 fighter bomber and Su-35C fighter to “launch a pinpoint strike” with BETAB-500 bunker-busting bombs. According to the ministry, the airstrike destroyed an underground terrorist command post and a communications center, along with the 40 IS members.
