A Russian Special Operations Forces (SOF) officer was killed helping the Syrian army in the fight against ISIS and the battle for the ancient city of Palmyra. The hero officer fought to the death with ISIL militants during a target-designation mission when his position got compromised, according to a military spokesman at Hmeimim air base on Thursday. Sputnik reports: The officer’s name, rank and the date of the accident remain undisclosed. According to the spokesman, “the officer carried out a mission in Tadmor near Palmyra for a week, spotting crucial ISIL facilities and providing precise coordinates for Russian airstrikes,” as reported by RIA Novosti. The spokesman stated that the soldier had been located and was surrounded by terrorists — and chose to draw their fire on himself. “He died as a hero,” the spokesman said. The presence of Russian special forces, conducting target designation missions, was earlier confirmed by Colonel General Aleksandr Dvornikov, a deputy commander of the Central Military District in Russia and chief of Russia’s campaign in Syria. “I won’t deny that our Special Operations Forces (SOF) are deployed in Syria. They conduct ground reconnaissance of pre-selected targets for Russian warplanes, assist in targeting warplanes in remote areas and perform other tasks,” the general said. “Take into account,” he added, “that corresponding forces from the US and other members of the [US-led] coalition are performing [...]