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Staff members of Russian Embassy in Damascus not injured in mortar shelling

MOSCOW, July 17. /TASS/. Personnel of the Russian Embassy in Damascus and diplomatic compounds were not hurt during the July 16 mortar shelling carried out from an area controlled by terrorists, the Foreign Ministry said on Monday.

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"Two mortar shells purportedly launched from the city’s Jobar area controlled by terrorists of Hay'at Tahrir al-Sham (former Jabhat al-Nusra front) and Faylaq al-Rahman exploded not far from the exterior perimeter of the diplomatic mission," the ministry said.

"Luckily, there are no casualties or destruction," the ministry said.

"We strongly condemn terrorist raids against the Russian diplomatic mission and peaceful quarters in Damascus," the ministry stressed. "Russia will continue its principled stance to conduct a decisive and uncompromising struggle against terrorists in Syria."

Moscow has again called on the international community to "unite efforts on a universal international and legal basis for eradicating the dangerous hotbed of terrorism in Syria and in the entire region as soon as possible."

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