Russian general killed in Daesh shelling in east Syria

A Russian military helicopter flies over a desert in Deir Ezzor province, Syria, on Sept. 15, 2017. Moscow on Sunday said a Russian general was killed in a mortar explosion while battling Daesh militants near the eastern Syrian city of Deir Ezzor on Thursday. (AP Photo, File)

MOSCOW: A Russian general was killed while battling Daesh group militants near the eastern Syrian city of Deir Ezzor, Moscow’s defense ministry said Sunday.
“Division general Valeri Assapov was killed when a shell exploded during shelling by IS fighters,” the ministry was quoted as saying by local media, adding that the officer was serving as an adviser to Syrian government troops.
The ministry said Assapov would be posthumously decorated for his service.
Deir Ezzor province, on Syria’s eastern border with Iraq, is rich with oil and gas fields that served as a key revenue stream for Daesh at the peak of its power.
Russia intervened in support of the Damascus government in September 2015 and has been assisting regime forces in an assault on Deir Ezzor from the west.