Syrian War News Updates -- September 26, 2017

Smoke rises after an air strike during fighting between members of the Syrian Democratic Forces and Islamic State militants in Raqqa. REUTERS/Zohra Bensemra

Al Jazeera: Mapping out Syria's remaining battles

Battles intensify as fighting in Syria now focused on three key areas.

As the conflict in Syria enters its seventh year, the civil war has left many parts of the country in ruins, killing more than 465,000 people, and displacing some 12 million Syrians from their homes.

Amid a wave of protests across the region known as the Arab Spring, longtime rulers in Tunisia, Egypt, and Libya were successfully toppled in 2011. But in Syria, peaceful demonstrations quickly turned into a full-fledged war between government forces and opposition armed groups that sought to overthrow the regime of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.

Years later, and following several rounds of internationally brokered peace talks, the war in Syria is still ongoing, with the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL, also known as ISIS) group fiercely fighting for its last stronghold in Syria.

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Syrian War News Updates -- September 26, 2017

Russia Gears Up for Big Syria Offensive -- Bloomberg
Russian military defies constant shelling to build bridge across Euphrates in Syria (VIDEO) -- RT
Russia builds bridge to move troops across Syria's Euphrates river: TV -- Reuters
Elite Syrian forces build-up in Hama, Aleppo for push to lift siege on Shi'ite villages in Idlib -- AMN Al-Masdar News
Russian bombers wipe out terrorist targets in Syria with cruise missiles -- TASS
Russian MoD releases Idlib airstrikes footage, denies targeting populated areas (VIDEO) -- RT
Syria war: Russian air strikes in Idlib leave 37 civilians dead, observatory says -- ABC News Online
Russia denies it killed civilians in air strikes on Syria's Idlib -- Gulf Times
Dozens of ISIS British fighters on the loose in Syria as Islamic State crumbles -- The Telegraph
Iran's Guards Use Aerial Guided-Missile Attacks to Back Regime Troops in Syria -- Asharq Al-awsat
US-backed forces say Russia attacked them in eastern Syria -- ABC News/AP
U.S.-backed alliance says Russian jets struck its fighters in east Syria -- Reuters
US-led strikes killed 84 civilians in Syria - HRW -- BBC
Russia, U.S. Allies Exchange Blame Over Deaths In Syria -- RFE
US Denies Role in Russian General's Death in Syria -- The Moscow Times
Damascus says Syrian Kurdish autonomy negotiable: report -- Reuters
The New Borders of Syria are Being Drawn Right Now in Deir Ezzour -- Al-Bawaba