MOSCOW (Reuters) - The Russian Defence Ministry on Monday denied its planes had bombed U.S.-backed militias in Syria’s Deir al-Zor province earlier in the day, saying it was always careful to ensure its air strikes were accurate, the RIA news agency reported.

RIA cited Major-General Igor Konashenkov as issuing the denial which followed allegations from the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF), an alliance of Kurdish and Arab militias fighting with the U.S.-led coalition, that Russia had killed one of its fighters and injured two others in the air strike.