DAMASCUS (Tasnim) � Russian fighter jets have intensified attacks on the strongholds of terrorist groups near the Syrian cities of Idlib and Aleppo over the past hours.





According to Tasnim dispatches, the Russian warplanes have hit 80 targets in northern outskirts of Idlib and southern suburbs of Aleppo over the past few hours.

Reports suggest that the harshest strikes have occurred near the location of downing of a Russian Mi-8 helicopter, which was shot down on August 1 in Idlib province after a delivery of humanitarian aid to Aleppo.

According to Russian military officials, the chopper was hit from the ground in an area under control of the armed units of al-Nusra Front terrorist group.

The intensified Russian aerial attacks come amid an extensive ground operation by the Syrian military forces to recapture the northern city of Aleppo from the terrorist groups.

Sources at Aleppo battlefield said on Wednesday that Syrian troops have repelled successive attacks by the terrorist groups desperately trying to break the siege of the city.

The Syrian soldiers, backed by voluntary forces, continue to liberate more territories near the city of Aleppo in their large-scale military offensive to liberate the strategic city.

Syria has been gripped by civil war since March 2011 with various terrorist groups, including Daesh (also known as ISIS or ISIL), currently controlling parts of it.

According to a report by the Syrian Center for Policy Research, the conflict has claimed the lives of over 470,000 people, injured 1.9 million others, and displaced nearly half of the country�s pre-war population of about 23 million within or beyond its borders.

By Tasnim News Agency