Paris (AFP) - The contours of Russia's strategy in Syria are emerging as it tries to carve out a rebel-free zone for Bashar al-Assad's regime and shut out Western forces from his air space.

Although the stated aim of Russia's mission was to target the Islamic State (IS) group, most analysts have dismissed these claims as window-dressing for a campaign that primarily seeks to prop up Assad's embattled regime against a much broader group of rebels.

"The priority for the Russians is to protect 'useful Syria'," said Michel Goya, a military historian at Sciences Po university in Paris, referring to the densely-populated western and coastal parts of the country where Syrian industry and agriculture are concentrated.

He said the Russians' first priority was attacking Al-Qaeda affiliate Al-Nusra, who are a more immediate threat in those areas than IS.

The few Russian strikes against IS targets are only to "justify their campaign but it's not really their priority", he added.

"The strategic objective is to secure an Alawite 'safe zone'... leaving the eastern, desert part of the country to (IS)," wrote Igor Sutyagin, of the Royal United Services Institute, in a recent analysis note.

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Russian President Vladimir Putin is facing growing international criticism over his military campaig …

Assad and much of the leadership come from the Alawite ethnic group based along the western coast, who fear they will be wiped out if jihadists take over the country.

Since the Alawites make up only 12 percent of the population, "control of the whole country is politically impossible and perhaps not even considered necessary for Damascus any more," wrote Sutyagin.

- 'Mature' systems -

A US-style air bombing campaign is a departure for the Russians.

Its 34 combat aircraft based in the Syrian government heartland of Latakia are a mixed bag of ageing fighters such as the Su-24 and new advanced strike aircraft in the form of the Su-34.

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Analysts say Russia is trying to push Western forces from Syria's airspace (AFP Photo/Sergey Ven …

But their missile systems are showing their age, lacking the high-tech "targeting pods" used by the US.

"All the systems we've seen the Russians use would be politely described as 'mature'," said Douglas Barrie, a military aerospace expert for the International Institute for Strategic Studies in London.

He said Russia has mostly been using unguided bombs dropped from medium heights, but its planes face limited threats if they need to fly low over targets.

"It's a comparatively permissive environment as the opposition have fairly limited air defences -- mostly small arms, machine guns. Some of the rebels might have man-portable surface-to-air missiles, but not all of those will present a huge threat to Russian planes," said Barrie.

But unlike the US-led coalition, Russia has a major intelligence advantage in the form of Syrian and Iranian ground forces.

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Russia began carrying out airstrike in Syria on September 30, 2015 (AFP Photo/Ho)

"The key challenge in this type of conflict is finding decent targets. You don't deploy a fighter aircraft to blow up a pick-up truck," said Goya.

The other military advantage for the Syrians and Russians is that they care less than NATO forces about killing civilians, the expert said.

"A major part of intelligence is trying to determine the risk of collateral damage," he said. "If that doesn't bother you, things become much simpler."

- De facto no-fly zone -

Simply by entering Syrian air space, Russia has also created a "de facto no-fly zone" protecting Assad and his assets.

"You can't allow a raid against Assad and his planes if there is the slightest risk of hitting the Russians also. There was talk of imposing a no-fly zone against Assad, now that's finished, it's dead," said Goya.

Turkey's interception of two Russian planes that entered its air space in recent days has raised concerns that Moscow is trying to block NATO and its allies from flying over Syria.

"I don't believe that this was an accident," a senior US official told AFP on Monday. "This is exactly the type of non-professional conduct that we were hoping to avoid."

Only last week, the Pentagon and Russia held high-level talks on how to avoid accidents in the skies over Syria as both Moscow and the US-led coalition carry out air strikes in the war-ravaged nation.

But analysts were sceptical that the incursions over Turkey were part of a wider plan by Russia.

"I would be surprised if the incident with Turkey was deliberate -- it was probably a navigational error by the pilot, lining up an attack and not paying attention to what air space he was in," said Barrie.

"It's in everyone's interests to make sure nothing untoward happens, especially given the cold relations between the West, NATO and Moscow."

Finian Cunningham (born 1963) has written extensively on international affairs, with articles published in several languages. Originally from Belfast, Ireland, he is a Master’s graduate in Agricultural Chemistry and worked as a scientific editor for the Royal Society of Chemistry, Cambridge, England, before pursuing a career in newspaper journalism. For over 20 years he worked as an editor and writer in major news media organizations, including The Mirror, Irish Times and Independent. Now a freelance journalist based in East Africa, his columns appear on RT, Sputnik, Strategic Culture Foundation and Press TV.

A gun control group is calling for the resignation of the southern Oregon sheriff who has led the response to last week’s mass shooting at Umpqua Community College in Roseburg.

Douglas County Sheriff John Hanlin, a staunch supporter of the Second Amendment, is under the microscope after a letter resurfaced that he had written to Vice President Joe Biden threatening not to enforce potential gun restrictions.

His esteem among gun control advocates suffered another hit following reports that he once shared a video on Facebook that suggested the U.S. government staged the 9/11 terrorist attacks and the Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting to “disarm the public.”

"This makes me wonder who we can trust anymore," he wrote on the since-deleted post. "Watch, listen, and keep an open mind."

Hanlin later distanced himself from these conspiracy theories, telling CNN on Friday, “That's not a conspiracy theory belief that I have."

Dan Gross, president of the Brady Campaign to Prevent Gun Violence, said in a statementTuesday that Hanlin is incapable of investigating last week’s community college shooting.

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Ethan Hurley, 7, top right, prays with a church group at a makeshift memorial near Snyder Hall at Um …

"His conspiracy theories about 9/11 and Sandy Hook and his refusal to enforce the law not only violate his sworn responsibility as a sheriff, they also put a cloud over the investigation which he is charged with leading,” Gross said.

Slideshow: Deadly shooting at Umpqua Community College

“The public deserves to have the confidence that a thorough investigation is being conducted that will yield honest answers — not just the ones Hanlin deems should be shared.”

In an appearance on CNN, Gross doubled down on his critique of Hanlin as someone capable of handling the shooting probe.

“He is charged with leading an unbiased investigation into what happened and what can be done to prevent future tragedies,” Gross said. “And I think it’s extreme enough, that this guy is a 9/11 and Sandy Hook conspiracy theorist, to say that these are extenuating circumstances and to call for this guy's resignation.”

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Douglas County Sheriff John Hanlin speaks during a news conference, Saturday, Oct. 3, 2015, in Roseb …

Two weeks after Hanlin sent his letter to Biden, as the Brady Campaign points out, the National Sheriff's Association revealed its position that sheriffs have a responsibility to uphold laws that prevent or reduce access to firearms for “prohibited persons”: "Sheriffs do not possess the legal authority to interpret the constitutionality of any law."

But several Douglas County residents told the Los Angeles Times they disagree with the idea that the recent shooting underscores the importance of tightening gun restrictions, adding that most people in the area share Hanlin’s views.

"He's trying to protect everybody's Second Amendment rights," said Dennis Harper, who works at an auto parts store near the community college. "We're in Oregon; that's what we do."

Another local, Carolyn Kellim, who runs a gun shop out of her home, proudly described Douglas County as “hunting country,” adding that gun control would be "the worst thing in the world that can happen.”

Hanlin, who was born and raised in the Roseburg area, attended UCC. He enjoys hunting, fishing and riding his motorcycle through the county’s rural areas, according to his official biography.

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Syrian troops battle insurgents as Russian warplanes strike in central Syria, activists say

BEIRUT (AP) -- Syrian troops backed by Russian airstrikes battled insurgents in central Syria on Wednesday in the first major ground fighting since Moscow began launching air raids on militants last week, activists said.

The fighting comes as the Russian airstrikes appear to have emboldened Syrian troops to launch a ground offensive after suffering a string of setbacks in northwestern Syria over the past few months.

The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said a government offensive began on four fronts early Wednesday in the northwestern provinces of Idlib and neighboring Hama. Observatory director Rami Abdurrahman said it is "the most intense fighting in months."

Activist Ahmad al-Ahmad, who is currently in Idlib, said government troops are "heavily" shelling central areas after rebels attacked an army post and destroyed a tank.

The Observatory and al-Ahmad said the main launching point for government forces is the town of Morek on the highway that links the capital Damascus with the northern city of Aleppo, Syria's largest city and former commercial center. Rebels have controlled areas on the highway since 2012.

The Local Coordination Committees, another activist group, said rebels were able to destroy two tanks and an armored personnel carrier in northern parts of Hama province near Idlib.

The Observatory said two helicopters believed to be Russian were seen flying at low altitude in Morek. It added that militants opened fire at the helicopters without striking them. It was not immediately clear if the pilots were Russian or Syrian.

The Islamic State group has no presence in the area that was attacked on Wednesday but al-Qaida's affiliate in Syria, the Nusra Front, is active in central and northern Syria, as are Western-backed rebels.

The latest developments come exactly a week after Russia began launching airstrikes in Syria.

Moscow has mainly targeted central and northwestern Syria, strategic regions that are the gateway to President Bashar Assad's strongholds in Damascus, and along the Mediterranean coast.

Meanwhile, Syrian state TV quoted an unnamed Syrian military official as saying that Russian warplanes attacked Islamic State positions in the town of Al-Bab and the nearby town of Deir Hafer in the northern province of Aleppo.