The Number of Russian Soldiers Killed in Syria Has Reached 112

The head of the Russian parliament's defense committee stated that since Russia's direct involvement in the Syrian civil war, it has lost 112 military personnel. Nearly half of the casualties occurred in two air incidents. Viktor Bondarev, head of the security and defense committee of the Federation Council of Russia, recently reported that the number of military personnel killed in connection with the Syrian civil war is 112. Almost half of these individuals were killed during two air incidents: the downing of an Il-20 on the evening of September 26 during an Israeli airstrike on Latakia, and the crash of an Antonov 26 last March. In the Il-20 incident, 15 military personnel were killed, and in the Antonov crash, which was en route to Syria, 39 lost their lives. Despite the increase in Russian military casualties related to the Syrian campaign, Bondarev stated that this figure is lower than Russian casualties in the Afghan war and also less than American casualties following the U.S. invasion of Iraq in 2003. In addition to human losses, the head of the security and defense committee mentioned that the Russian army has also lost eight aircraft, seven helicopters, and one or two armored vehicles. Furthermore, a number of Russian contractors are also present in the Syrian military campaign, supporting Bashar al-Assad's forces. The exact number of these individuals is not officially specified, and despite reports of their deaths in battles, it is unclear how many of them have lost their lives in the Syrian civil war. Earlier, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, based in London, reported that 'dozens' of personnel hired by contractors and military companies were killed during an airstrike in Deir ez-Zor. The U.S.-led coalition announced on February 6 last year that in response to an 'unexpected attack' by 'Syrian government-supporting forces' on the 'Syrian Democratic Forces' centers, it conducted six airstrikes against Assad's supporting forces. This conflict occurred eight kilometers east of the military buffer zone on the banks of the Euphrates River in Deir ez-Zor province. In the same month, an American official reported that 'more than 100 Assad-supporting forces' were killed in these attacks. A spokesperson for the Russian Foreign Ministry confirmed the death of five individuals.