Russian mercenaries reported killed by U.S. airstrike in Syria

Moscow — Multiple Russian military contractors died in a U.S. airstrike in Syria last week, people who knew two of those killed said Tuesday, signaling the beginning of a potentially dangerous phase in the crowded theater of war in the Middle East.

The incident appears to be the first publicly known case of the U.S. military firing on and killing Russians fighting on behalf of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. Neither Washington nor Moscow officially confirmed the deaths.

And the Kremlin, rather than using the incident to fan anti-American feelings, sought to play it down.

The United States described the Feb. 7 airstrike southeast of the city of Deir al-Zour as a counterattack after an unprovoked assault by pro-government forces on a base where U.S. troops were operating in support of local partner units. One U.S. official said the American-led coalition was in regular contact with Russian counterparts “before, during and after” the attack and that no regular Russian service members were believed to have been killed.

But beyond Russia’s official military engagement in Syria backing the regime, an unknown number of Russian mercenaries are fighting as part of Assad’s army. In recent days, rumors swirled online in Russia that large numbers of those military contractors had perished under American fire. The contractors have been active in Syria since the Kremlin launched its intervention in September 2015, according to Russian news reports.

On Tuesday, two Russians told The Washington Post that someone they knew was among the dead. Russian news media reported that they had confirmed the deaths of several other military contractors, as well.

“I know he didn’t die alone,” said Alexander Averin, a spokesman for a farleft Other Russia party, describing the death in Syria of party member Kirill Ananyev. Averin added that it was “a fact” that other Russians also died, according to his sources in Syria.

Analysts have grown increasingly concerned that the conflict in Syria could spill well beyond its borders.