Russia launches new air strikes as Syrian government forces make push

Russian forces carried out airstrikes on Islamic state positions in Syria on Tuesday as Syrian government forces made a push across their entire frontline.

According to Russian Army chief of staff Valery Gerasimov, his country’s military destroyed 14 Islamic state sites in Syria on Tuesday with air-launched guided missiles, Interfax reported.

In parallel, French president Francois Hollande and his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin agreed to step up their coordination on anti-terrorist strikes, the newswire said citing the Kremlin.

The news came after Defence minister Sergey Shoigu announced the Russian Federation would deploy an additional 25 long-range aircraft to the Middle Eastern country.

Later on Tuesday Putin instructed Russian naval units to establish contact with the French naval group being dispatched to the region and,interact with it as with allies, Interfax said.

Gerasimov was quoted as saying that an offensive by Syrian government troops on Palmyra was continuing.