Russian deaths in Syria underscore dangers

WASHINGTON — It’s a scenario many feared in the fog of Syria’s multi-front war: a confrontation in which U.S. forces, responding to a provocation, kill Russian soldiers or mercenaries on a crowded battlefield.

Russian news reports Tuesday described just such a scenario, with an unknown number of Russian military contractors killed in a ferocious U.S. counterattack last week. But Defence Secretary Jim Mattis and other U.S. officials said they had no such information on casualties, and the Kremlin did not confirm any Russian deaths.

What is not disputed is the fast-changing, often confusing nature of a battlefield in which forces of multiple countries are bumping up against one another, raising the prospect of violent collisions. Whether by accident or intention, such clashes risk plunging Washington and Moscow into a situation they studiously avoided even during some of the darkest hours of their relationship: their forces directly warring with each other.

Russian forces are supporting the Syrian government in its war with opposition groups, some of which are backed by the United States. Elements of both sides are fighting the last remnants of the Islamic State group in Syria. And U.S. and Russian military officials maintain daily contact to avoid battlefield mishaps.

In response to what the Pentagon called a barrage of artillery and tank fire from several hundred “pro-regime” fighters in Deir el-Zour province on Feb. 7, a broad range of U.S. air power was unleashed. For three hours, American attack planes, strategic bombers, gunships, attack helicopters and drones fired on the attacking ground force.

In a second episode, the U.S. struck a Russian-made battle tank Saturday after it “took a shot at us” in the same general area of Deir el-Zour province, Gen. Jeffrey Harrigian said, adding that he did not know who was operating the tank.

Russian media said Russian contractors were part of proSyrian government forces that advanced on oilfields in the Deir el-Zour province and were targeted by the U.S. The reports cited activists who said at least four Russians were killed on Feb. 7.