September 7, 2018

U.S. Marines conducted a live-fire aerial assault exercise in southern Syria on Friday designed to warn Russian and other military forces to stay away from an American base there.

The exercise, involving a company-size unit, came amid rising U.S.-Russia tensions across the Syrian battlespace. The Trump administration has warned both Russia and the Syrian government against a planned offensive in Idlib province in northwest Syria, the largest remaining pocket of rebel fighters who have tried, and failed, over the past seven years to oust President Bashar al-Assad.

In support of the Idlib operation, Russia has deployed a significant naval presence in the eastern Mediterranean, with weaponry capable of reaching across Syria.

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https://www.washingtonpost.com/world/national-security/us-forces-conduct-live-fire-exercise-in-syrian-desert-in-warning-to-russia/2018/09/07/406c3b30-b2dc-11e8-a20b-5f4f84429666_story.html?noredirect=on&utm_term=.4e4deb64496f