U.S.: Indications Russia Has Begun Airstrikes in Syria

The United States has indications that Russia has carried out its first airstrike in Syria, near the contested city of Homs, a senior U.S. official told CNN on Wednesday.

Russian authorities warned the U.S. not to fly its jets in Syria but did not reveal where they were planning to strike, the official added.

An official, speaking on condition of anonymity to Reuters, also said that Washington believes Russia has begun airstrike operations near Homs but said the information was "preliminary."

The Syrian presidency confirmed to Reuters on Wednesday that Russia's military buildup in the country in support of President Bashar al-Assad's regime was a result of a request from Damascus, revealing that the Syrian leader had written to his counterpart Vladimir Putin.

"Any increase in Russian military support to Syria happened and is happening as a result of a request from the Syrian state," the Syrian presidency said in a statement.

The official's reports of a Russian strike in Syria, if confirmed, would be the first instance of Russian military action in the civil-war-torn country.

The upper house of the Russian parliament approved the use of Russia's air force in Syria on Wednesday, allowing Putin to order military action in the country with immediate effect.

"The Federation Council unanimously supported the president's request—162 votes in favor of granting permission," the Kremlin's chief of staff, Sergey Ivanov, said, according to Russian news agency ITAR-Tass. He noted that Russian ground troops would not be used in the conflict and that military action will be coordinated with Syrian government forces.

Ivanov said that Russian military action had been requested by Syrian President Bashar Assad, however he did not go into details about the actions, only saying that possible airstrikes "cannot go on forever and have a definitely set timeframe."

In his daily press briefing, Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov also declined to say when Russian airstrikes would begin or if they are already underway and what aircraft would be involved.

He said that Russia would "practically be the only country, carrying out these operations on a legitimate basis, at the request of the Syrian authorities," Tass reports. France and Turkey have previously carried out airstrikes against terror groups in Syria, as part of a U.S.-led anti-ISIS coalition.

Unlike the coalition, however, Russia is a supporter of Syrian leader Bashar Assad, whom many states in the coalition refuse to cooperate with because of the brutality of his government.

Ivanov told press that the countries already involved in Syrian airstrikes would be told in greater detail about the nature and timing of Russia's operations but said he would not discuss this with journalists "for understandable reasons".

The U.S. military's Central Command (CENTCOM) did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

This is a developing story and will be updated as more information becomes available.