Russian bomb disposal experts find terrorists' large, well-disguised ammo cache in Syria's Palmyra
MOSCOW. April 22 (Interfax) - A cache containing more than 12,000 mines and projectiles was found during an engineer reconnaissance operation on the outskirts of the city of Tadmur (Palmyra, Homs Province) in Syria, Russian Defense Ministry spokesman Maj. Gen. Igor Konashenkov told reporters on Friday.
"Russian bomb disposal experts have confiscated over 12,000 explosive items from the terrorists' cache. Among them were large-caliber mines for mortars, artillery projectiles, as well as anti-personnel mines," he said.
"The large ammunition cache belonging to terrorist groups from ISIL [Islamic State terrorist organization, outlawed in Russia] was well disguised and was spotted with the help of special-purpose equipment, which was delivered by Russian bomb disposal experts to Syria," he said.
"The terrorists' arsenal was professionally protected from occasional detection by tripwires with nine landmines dug into the ground," the general said.
The cache contained around 1,000 electric detonators and improvised remote control fuse igniters, which are used to equip improvised explosive devices, Konashenkov said.
"Russian bomb disposal experts found one of the largest ammunition caches, and the improvised explosive devices and the landmines kept in it were used by ISIL militants to organize terrorist attacks not only in Homs Province, but in other districts of Syria as well," the general said.
"The arsenal was defused and the explosive items found there were removed to a safe place for their subsequent disposal," Konashenkov said.
