The US has 900 troops in Syria and 2,500 in neighboring Iraq on a mission to advise and assist local forces trying to prevent a resurgence of Islamic State.

A general view of the aftermath of a Russian air strike at Jisr al-Shughour, Syria June 25, 2023.  (photo credit: WHITE HELMETS/HANDOUT VIA REUTERS)
A general view of the aftermath of a Russian air strike at Jisr al-Shughour, Syria June 25, 2023.
(photo credit: WHITE HELMETS/HANDOUT VIA REUTERS)

A fighter-bomber jet of the US-led coalition in Syria came "dangerously" close to a Russian surveillance aircraft over Homs province on Sunday, Russia's TASS state news agency reported, citing a Russian military official in the Middle Eastern country.

The US has 900 troops in Syria and 2,500 in neighboring Iraq on a mission to advise and assist local forces trying to prevent a resurgence of Islamic State, which in 2014 seized large swaths of both countries but was later pushed back.

"A coalition F/A-18 fighter-bomber came into dangerous contact with an An-30 aircraft of the Russian Aerospace Forces, which was carrying out a scheduled flight in Syrian airspace," TASS quoted Captain Oleg Ignasyuk, deputy head of the Russian Center for Reconciliation of Opposing Sides in Syria, as saying.

"The Russian crew, demonstrating high professionalism, promptly took the necessary measures to prevent a collision."

The incident took place over the al-Tanf region of Homs, TASS said.

Russian President Vladimir Putin attends a meeting with Syrian President Bashar al-Assad at the Kremlin in Moscow, Russia, July 24, 2024. (credit: Sputnik/Valeriy Sharifulin/Pool via REUTERS)

Lack on context of the incident

Reuters was not able to independently verify the report.

The US Department of Defense has not immediately responded to Reuters' request for comment.

The United States has a military base in Syria's al-Tanf region across the border from Jordan.