Russian Major General Pyotr Milyukhin has been named as the country's highest-ranking victim of the Syrian conflict after being severely injured near Palmyra.

Milyukhin is believed to have lost both legs and an eye at the end of February, when the vehicle he was traveling in hit a mine.

Milyukhin, who heads combat training for Russia's Western Military District, is the first general to be injured during the Syrian conflict.

He is currently being cared for in Moscow's Burdenko military hospital, the Kommersant newspaper reported Monday.

The Syrian city of Palmyra was first captured by the Islamic State in May 2015. Syrian government forces, aided by Russian air support, captured the city in March 2016, but lost it again on December 11. Syrian-Russian forces then retook the city on March 2 with Russian support.