In a sign of rising tensions between US and Russian forces acting as middlemen inside conflicted regions of Syria, a US Army vehicle pushed a Russian police truck off-road, almost killing an innocent passerby in Qamishil, where last week US troops clashed with locals that led to the death of a 14-year-old.
It is reported the US Central command has been apprised of the situation and looking into it. The video shows a three-vehicle army convoy of Russian vehicles behind a two-vehicle convoy of armored US military trucks.
The video of the incident shot by a civilian shows the lead vehicle overtaking an American military truck. The Russian police truck overtakes one US vehicle as it approaches the next vehicle - a US MRAP (Mine Resistant Ambush Protected); the US military vehicle is seen running the Russian armored truck off the road.
The video posted on Twitter claims that the US-Russia confrontation took place on a stretch of road near Qamishli, a city in northeastern Syria on the Syrian-Turkish border.
The US, which is siding with Turkey, earlier last week had to face the anger of the local public in the same region of Qamishli.
The US troops claimed that a confrontation took place in the area after it came across a checkpoint occupied by pro-Syrian regime forces.
The US military issued a series of warnings to de-escalate, it came under small arms fire from unknown individuals and returned fire in self-defense, according to a statement posted on Twitter by Operation Inherent Resolve spokesman Col. Myles B. Caggins III.
Pentagon spokesperson Lt. Col. Carla Gleason said in a statement that no coalition service members were killed. Caggins added in a second tweet that one US service member "had a minor superficial scratch while operating their equipment" and that the individual is now back on duty.
The Russian officials later in a statement said that a 14-year-old boy was killed in the clash of US troops with local civilians, while another civilian was wounded.
In Syria, turns have been running high after Assad forces increased its attack on Idlib and since then Turkey and the US have sent in forces in the region.
Idlib and its immediate surroundings in northwest Syria—consisting of rural northern Latakia, northwestern Hama, and western Aleppo—stand out as the last segment of the country held by groups, which are either primarily jihadist, Islamist, or Salafi in orientation.
It is reported that the Al Qaeda militia also has been used by the Turkish forces in the region to fight the Syrian forces.
