On January 22 and 23, Russian Aerospace Forces warplanes carried out more than 82 airstrikes on hideouts of ISIS cells in Syria’s central region, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.

The London-based monitoring group said that the airstrikes targeted the eastern countryside of Homs as well as the deserts of Raqqa and Deir Ezzor.

The Russian airstrikes were apparently a response to a large attack by ISIS cells that targeted a number of positions of the pro-government National Defense Forces (SDF) near the town of al-Resafa in the southern Raqqa countryside early on January 22.

During the attack, ISIS terrorists wounded at least 12 fighters of the NDF. However, the terrorists failed to capture any position.

Syrian government forces launched a large-scale combing operation in the central region on January 20.  The operation didn’t deter ISIS cells, apparently.

ISIS insurgency in central Syria will not likely end anytime soon. Nevertheless, the terrorist group’s cells are currently incapable of threatening key urban centers and vital roads in the region.

Source: South Front