2017 Russian Air Force Al-Bab incident
The 2017 Russian Air Force Al-Bab incident occurred when three Turkish soldiers were killed and 11 injured after a Russian Air Force Tupolev Tu-22M attacked Turkish soldiers accidentally at al-Bab, Syria. Strike. A Tupolev Tu-22M flying a strike mission against a building in al-Bab, Syria suspected of containing Islamic State fighters, dropped a bomb on a Turkish army position. The bombing killed 3 Turkish troops and injured 11 others. Turkish military officials called the strike "accidental" and an incident of "friendly fire". Dmitry Peskov, the Kremlin's spokesman , said that the pilots had "guided by co-ordinates" given to them by Turkish personnel and that, "there should not have been Turkish troops at those co-ordinates." This charge was denied by Turkish officials. Aftermath. The Turkish General Staff announced that a Russian war plane targeted Turkish soldiers by accident. After the Russian Government confirmed the action, Russian President Vladimir Putin called Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan and expressed his regret.