A Russian Su-24 takes off on a combat mission at Hemeimeem airbase, Syria, on Thursday, Oct. 22, 2015. IMAGE: AP PHOTO/VLADIMIR ISACHENKOV
On December 12, Russian sources released footage showing the recent airstrikes on the house of infamous Chechen leader Muslim Abu Walid al-Shishani in the northwestern Syrian region of Greater Idlib.
Two Su-24M warplanes of the Russian Aerospace Forces targeted the house, which is located near town of Yacubiyeh in the western countryside of Idlib, on the morning of December 11.
Al-Shishani survived the Russian airstrikes. However, his wife and two daughters were lightly wounded. His personal bodyguard, Abu Mohamad al-Ansar, was killed.
Момент авиаудара по дому Муслима Шишани, деревня Аль-Якубия. 11.12.2021 pic.twitter.com/wwe5VXtePX
— Андрей (@AndreyZhukovv) December 12, 2021
Many radicals in Greater Idlib held al-Qaeda-affiliated Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham, the de-facto ruler of the region, responsible for the attempt on al-Shishani’s life. The group was accused of providing the Russian intelligence with the coordinates of the leader’s house.
In October, HTS launched a large attack on al-Shishani’s group, Junud al-Sham, in the northern Lattakia countryside. The group was neutralized within a few days. Al-Shishani and his militants were forced out from the region.
Al-Shishani, whose real name is Murad Iraklievich Margoshvili, is known to be one of the most wanted terrorists by Russian authorities. The Georgian terrorist fought against Russian government forces in the First and Second Chechen Wars.
This will not likely be the last Russian attempt on al-Shishani life. The terrorist is currently trapped in Greater Idlib with nowhere else to go.
