Russia ordered its troops in Syria to separate from pro-Iran militias in mid-March in an effort to protect them from the spread of the coronavirus, the New Khaleej reported.
An opposition source said Russian and Syrian regime troops were repositioned away from the Bustan Al-Qasr neighbourhood in Aleppo, known to be a stronghold of pro-Iranian militias in the city.
This came as reports claimed Iranian fighters and pro-Iranian militias had been infected by the novel coronavirus but Iran and the Syrian regime were ensuring news of this did not spread by threatening medical staff.
By 12 April, 40 pro-Iranian militia fighters had been transferred to hospitals in Syria after contracting the disease, the reports claimed.
READ: Russia’s rising dawn over Libya, or is it another Syria in the making?