Russia denies Daesh captured soldiers in Syria's Dayr al-Zawr

Russia's Defense Ministry has denied that two Russian soldiers were captured by the Daesh Takfiri terrorists in Syria.

“There have been no incidents involving the capture or losses among military servicemen of Russia's armed forces in the province of Dayr al-Zawr or in other areas in Syria,” Russia’s Interfax news agency quoted a defense ministry official as saying on Tuesday.

Hours earlier, Daesh had released a video it said showed two Russian soldiers captured in Dayr al-Zawr, eastern Syria.

One of the men in the video, bearded and wearing handcuffs, spoke in Russian and the one who remained silent had bruises on his face. The two appeared wearing gray tunics. The 42-second video, which was released on Daesh’s AMAQ propaganda website and dated October 3, has yet to be verified by independent sources. It is not clear when the video was made.

In the clip, the man who spoke to the camera said he was from a village in southern Russia. He gave his name and his date of birth. He said he “was taken prisoner during a counteroffensive” by Daesh. He also gave the name, date of birth and home district of the other man who, according to the video, was taken captive with him.

In a similar statement last month, Daesh claimed that it had captured two Russians as they battled in towns around Dayr al-Zawr. Russia denied the account at the time.

Russia has been helping Syrian forces in an ongoing battle in the province of Dayr al-Zawr as Daesh struggles to keep its last positions in eastern Syria. The Russian military assistance, which began in late 2015 at the official request of the Syrian government, has proved effective as Syrians continue to recapture key areas from Daesh and other terrorist groups across the country with the backing of Russian air cover.

In Dagestan, Daesh claims hitting Russian police

Daesh has been seeking to compensate the losses in Syria by launching or cooperating in attacks against civilians and security forces inside Russia.

In a Tuesday statement, Daesh claimed responsibility for the killing of two policemen in Russia's Dagestan region.

The group said three of its members had killed the two Russian policemen near the Dagestani city of Kizilyurt on Sunday. Russian authorities said in turn that police had neutralized "two bandits" involved in the killing of policemen during an "anti-terror operation" in Dagestan on Sunday.

Citing numerous attacks by Daesh in Russia, authorities have sought to defend Moscow’s military involvement in Syria. They say the operation in Syria is meant to prevent the return of thousands of Russian nationals who have joined terror groups in the Arab country over the past few years.

Press TV’s website can also be accessed at the following alternate addresses:

www.presstv.ir