Sources in Russia’s Defense Ministry said on Tuesday that warplanes parachuted food and cargo to the city of Deir ez-Zor, which is held by ISIS.

Russian Defense Ministry spokesman Igor Konashenkov said the delivery, which was more than 40 tons, was also delivered to other localities around the city, which saw the massacre of a large group of people by ISIS in the weekend.

“The Syrian leadership received information from the settlements to which humanitarian aid was airlifted that all cargoes were received and distributed among local residents,” the Russian official said.

Konashenkov said Russian warplanes also conducted combat sorties against ISIS positions in eastern Syria, killing at least 60 terrorists and inflicting losses on the weaponry depots used by the militants.

Russian officials said on January 15 that the country’s air force had begun humanitarian operations in Syria.

“The inhabitants are gradually coming back to Syrian cities and peaceful life is returning ... in this context, the implementation of humanitarian operations will be a new line of work for the Russian armed forces in Syria,” said General Sergei Rudskoi, a senior Russian General Staff official.

Rudskoi said most of the relief aid was meant for Deir ez-Zor, adding that 22 tons of aid was airdropped to the city as the first episode of the relief work.

Russia launched its airstrikes against ISIS and other Takfiri groups in Syria on September 30, 2015, upon a request from Damascus, Press TV reported.

S/SH