RUSSIAN JETS HIT INJURGENTS NEAR KEY SYRIAN REDOUBT

Russian jets intensified their airstrikes Monday in central Syria as government forces battled insurgents in a strategic area near a rebel-held province and a government stronghold.

The government push is the latest in a bid to regain the Sahl al-Ghab plain, which is adjacent to Latakia province, a stronghold of President Bashar Assad. After a heavy barrage of Russian airstrikes, the fighting was focused on the village of Kfar Nabudeh, which officials said had been seized by government troops.

Russia’s airstrikes have been criticised by the West for targetting rebels within Syria, but some Syrians, like the woman below, regard Putin as a saviour of the country.