War on terror

Russian warplanes strike Syria; U.S., Russian officials talk

Russian military officials said their warplanes destroyed two Islamic State command centers in Syria in the past 24 hours, and their planes also reportedly helped Syrian troops seize a central village Saturday in fierce clashes with anti-government rebels as part of an ongoing ground offensive.

The two claims, while not mutually exclusive, underscore the complicated role Russia is playing with its stepped-up military presence in Syria.

To avoid accidents in the skies over Syria, U.S. defense officials, overseeing their own coalition campaign against Islamic militants, held a long-delayed, 90-minute secure videoconference with Russian counterparts Saturday to discuss steps to “promote safe flight operations over Syria.”