MOSCOW: Three Russian and several Turkish soldiers were injured Tuesday in Syria’s volatile Idlib province when a joint military patrol hit an improvised explosive device, the Russian defense ministry said.
The device blew up at 8:50 local time (0550 GMT) as their convoy patrolled the M4 highway in the southern part of a de-escalation zone, a statement said.
A Russian and a Turkish armored vehicle were damaged, with three Russians “lightly injured,” it said. Several Turkish soldiers were also wounded.
Russia and Turkey launched the patrols along the M4 in March following a cease-fire agreement aimed at stopping heavy fighting in and around Idlib, the last major bastion of anti-government forces in Syria’s civil war.
Russia backs Syrian President Bashar Assad in the conflict and Turkey backs the opposition, but the two countries have agreed several deals to reduce hostilities.
