The Russian air force accidentally killed three Turkish soldiers and wounded 11 others, during an operation against the Islamic State in northern Syria. In a statement, the Turkish Military said that “During an operation by a Russia Federation warplane against Islamic State targets in the region of the Euphrates Shield operation in Syria, a bomb accidentally hit a building used by Turkish Army units.”
The Kremlin responded to the Turkish statement, saying that Russian President Vladimir Putin had called his Turkish Counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan and expressed his condolences, blaming the misdirected strikes on poor coordination between Moscow and Ankara. The incident highlighted the risk of unintended clashes between the numerous foreign powers involved in Syria’s complex war, that has raged on for almost six years. Besides Russia and Turkey, they include Lebanon’s Hezbollah and other Iranian-backed militias, and members of the US-led coalition, fighting the Islamic State.