A General Atomics MQ-1C Gray Eagle armed with AGM-114 Hellfire missiles. (Photo Credit: U.S. Army)
United States-led coalition fighter jets and drones had violated Syria airspace 13 times, Rear Admiral Vadim Kulit, deputy head of the Russian Center for Reconciliation in Syria, revealed on September 12.
The commander said during a briefing that the violation all took place over the southeastern area of al-Tanf over the past day.
“Three pairs of F-35, a pair of F-16 and a pair of Rafale fighter jets, as well as three MQ-1C multi-role unmanned aerial vehicles violated Syria’s airspace in the al-Tanf area, across which international air routes run, 13 times during the day,” he said.
According to Kulit, 12 violations of the U.S.-Russian deconfliction protocols by coalition drones were also reported in Syria on the same day.
“The coalition continues to create dangerous situations that may cause air accidents or incidents and escalate the situation in Syria’s airspace,” he said.
The U.S.-led coalition maintains a garrison in al-Tanf with a 55-kilometer no-fly zone, in addition to a network of bases at key oil and gas fields in the northeastern governorates of Deir Ezzor and al-Hasakah. This presence, which is allegedly meant to counter ISIS, is not sanctioned by the Syrian government, who considers it to be an occupation.
Last week, the coalition held a live-fire exercise at al-Tanf garrison. The exercise focused on countering drones, according to the London-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.
The Russian military group in Syria, which operates against ISIS and other terrorist groups under an agreement with the country’s government, voiced its concern over the coalition’s unhinged aerial operations on several occasions over the last few months.
The coalition’s operations over al-Tanf are especially dangerous, considering that civilian flight pass over the area on a regular basis.
