Coalition Attacks Syrian Army Amid Numerous Truce Violations by Rebels - Moscow

Moscow urges Washington to put pressure on Syrian rebels backed by the US to convince them fully comply with the ceasefire regime, the Russian Foreign Ministry said Sunday following the US-led coalition airstrikes near Syria's Deir Ez-Zor against the Syrian government troops.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) — The ministry expressed concern that the attacks by the coalition planes in Deir ez-Zor "had taken place amid numerous documented ceasefire violations by the illegal armed groups of the Syrian opposition, which had joined the ceasefire regime, according to the US side."

"We insistently urge Washington to put necessary pressure on the illegal armed groups under its patronage to make them fully comply with the ceasefire conditions. Otherwise, the implementation of the full set of the Russia-US agreements, reached in Geneva on September 9, may be put under threat and it will contradict the interests of the whole international community," the ministry's statement reads.

The attacks by the coalition planes in Deir ez-Zor were first reported by the Syrian army on Saturday. The Russian Defense Ministry confirmed the attacks saying they killed 62 servicemen and injured 100 more. The attack was later confirmed by the US Central Command, which said that Syrian troops were mistaken for Daesh terrorist group.

On September 9, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov and US Secretary of State John Kerry announced a new peace plan to address the five-year conflict in Syria. The ceasefire stipulated by the agreement came into force on September 12. Humanitarian access, along with seven days of reduced violence, are some of the conditions of the US-Russia deal.