Conflict

Russian Military in Syria

Incident Code

RS2012

Location

خان شيخون, Khan Sheikhoun, Idlib, Syria

Geolocation

35.440813, 36.6493607
Accuracy: City

Airwars Assessment

Last Updated: July 23, 2025

(Previous Incident Codes: R1887RS2019)

On March 24, 2017, one civilian was reportedly killed and up to nine were wounded in an alleged Russia or Syrian regime airstrike on the town of Khan Sheikhoun in Idlib, local media reported.

Ahmed Khatib, a correspondent for the Mirror of Syria in Idlib, said that “warplanes carried out several air raids on the residential neighbourhoods and the popular market in the city of Khan Sheikhoun, killing one person and injuring eight others.”

Another source, @ahmadalsheiko, reported that the strikes were carried out by “S-24 warplanes”.

Most sources pointed to Russia as the responsible party while @SPRINGNOWTIME reported that both the Syrian regime and Russia were to blame.

Khan Shakhoun was most likely subject to two different attacks that day (or the morning of the 25th). The two incidents have been treated separately. Also see event RS2019a.

Key Information

Country
Military Actor
Strike Type
Airstrike
Strike Status
Contested strike
Civilian Harm Reported
Yes
Civilian Harm Status
Contested
Causes of Death / Injury
Heavy weapons and explosive munitions
Civilians reported killed
1
Civilians reported injured
2–8

Geolocation Notes

Reports of the incident mention the city of Khan Sheikhoun (خان شيخون), for which the generic coordinates are: 35.440813, 36.6493607. Due to limited satellite imagery and information available to Airwars, we were unable to verify the location further.

Military Statements

Russian Military Assessment
Suspected belligerent
Russian Military
Russian Military position on incident
Not yet assessed
Russian Military Strike Report
Russia has not reported any strikes between March 1st - 31st 2017.
Syrian Regime Assessment
Suspected belligerent
Syrian Regime
Syrian Regime position on incident
Not yet assessed

Media from Sources (3)