Government says Islamic State talking to Al-Nusra about uniting against Syrian army

The Russian defence ministry said on Wednesday it had overheard Islamic State commanders in Syria talking to their counterparts in Al-Nusra about the possibility of joining forces to take on the Syrian army, the RIA Novosti news agency reported.

"Information about the start of talks between the commanders of several big units of the terrorist group Al-Nusra with the commanders of Islamic State about uniting to hold back a Syrian army offensive was picked up by radio intelligence," Major-General Igor Konashenkov was quoted as saying by the agency.