Russia on Tuesday announced for the first time it had flown bombing raids against Takfiri groups in Syria from an airbase in Iran after deploying its warplanes to the country.

Russia on Tuesday announced for the first time it had flown bombing raids against Takfiri groups in Syria from an airbase in Iran after deploying its warplanes to the country.

"On August 16 Tu-22M3 long-range bombers and Su-34 frontline bombers, flying with a full bomb load from the Hamedan air base (Islamic Republic of Iran), conducted a group air strike against targets of the ISIL and Nusra Front terrorist groups in the provinces of Aleppo, Deir Ezzor and Idlib," the defense ministry said.

The strikes led to the destruction of "five large warehouses with weapons, ammunition and fuel" and jihadist training camps near Aleppo, Deir Ezzor, the village of Saraqeb in the Idlib region and Al-Bab, an IS-held town in Aleppo province, the ministry said in a statement.

The bombing also targeted three command centers near the village of Jafra and Deir Ezzor, killing "a large number of fighters," Moscow added.

Conducting its bombing raids from Iran will dramatically cut the time it takes Moscow's long-range bombers to reach Syria.

Moscow has used warplanes stationed at its Hmeimim airbase outside the Syrian coastal city of Latakia, as well as warships stationed in the Caspian Sea and a submarine in the Mediterranean Sea to launch cruise missile attacks on Syrian territory.

The distance of these flights equal roughly 2,150km to reach a target near Palmyra. In comparison, the Hamedan Air Base in Iran is roughly 900km from Palmyra.

The Hmeimim airbase is not suitable for the massive TU-22M3, one of the largest bomber jets in the world.