Farkhanur Gavrilova, mother of Ruslan Gavrilov who is reported to have killed in Syria, looks on while speaking to the Associated Press in the village of Kedrovoye, Russia, Thursday, Feb. 15, 2018. Gavrilova's son Ruslan was one of seven men in this village of 2,300 who are believed to have joined a private military company called Wagner. The company reportedly was involved in an attack on U.S.-backed Kurdish fighters in Syria on Feb. 7 and suffered devastating losses in a U.S. counterstrike. (AP/Nataliya Vasilyeva)
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Russia in World Affairs 16 videos
Farkhanur Gavrilova, mother of Ruslan Gavrilov who is reported to have killed in Syria, looks on while speaking to the Associated Press in the village of Kedrovoye, Russia, Thursday, Feb. 15, 2018. Gavrilova's son Ruslan was one of seven men in this village of 2,300 who are believed to have joined a private military company called Wagner. The company reportedly was involved in an attack on U.S.-backed Kurdish fighters in Syria on Feb. 7 and suffered devastating losses in a U.S. counterstrike. (AP/Nataliya Vasilyeva)
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(L/R): Head of Dutch Military Intelligence and Security Service Onno Eichelsheim, Minister of Defence Ank Bijleveld and British ambassador Peter Wilson attend a press conference of the Dutch Military Intelligence and Security Service (MIVD) at The Hague, The Netherlands, on October 4, 2018. - Dutch intelligence thwarted a Russian cyber attack targeting the global chemical weapons watchdog in April and expelled four Russian agents, the government said. The Russians set up a car full of electronic equipment in the car park of a hotel next to the Organisation for the Prohibition for Chemical Weapons in The Hague in a bid to hack its computer system, it said. (Photo by Bart Maat / ANP / AFP) / Netherlands OUT (Photo credit should read BART MAAT/AFP/Getty Images)
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The UK will expel 23 Russian diplomats from the country after concluding that the Russian state is responsible for the attempted murder of former Russian agent, Sergei Skripal and his daughter Yulia in Salisbury on March 4th. They will have one week to leave. "For those who seek to do us harm, my message is simple. You are not welcome here."
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A Russian flag flies next to the US embassy building in Moscow on July 31, 2017. (MLADEN ANTONOV/AFP/Getty Images)
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SALISBURY, ENGLAND - JULY 05: A police officer stands by a cordon in place at Queen Elizabeth Gardens in Salisbury after a major incident was declared when a man and woman were exposed to the Novichok nerve agent on July 5, 2018 in Salisbury, England. The couple, named locally as Dawn Sturgess 44, and Charlie Rowley, 45 were taken to Salisbury District Hospital on Saturday and remain there in a critical condition. In March Russian former spy Sergei Skripal and his 33-year-old daughter Yulia were poisoned with the Russian-made Novichok in the town of Salisbury. British Prime Minister Theresa May has accused Russia of being behind the attack on the former spy and his daughter, expelling 23 Russian diplomats in retaliation. (Photo by Jack Taylor/Getty Images)
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A CNN team accessed the Malaysia Airlines flight 17 (MH17) crash site, July 30, 2014 and found evidence that there are still belongings at the site, including pieces of the plane .
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Yulia Skripal poses for the media during an interview in n London, Wednesday May 23, 2018. Yulia Skripal says recovery has been slow and painful, in first interview since nerve agent poisoning. (Dylan Martinez/Pool via AP)
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A Russian flag flies next to the US embassy building in Moscow on March 27, 2018. (MLADEN ANTONOV/AFP/Getty Images)
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Presidential candidate, President Vladimir Putin addresses the crowd during a rally and a concert celebrating the fourth anniversary of Russia's annexation of Crimea at Manezhnaya Square in Moscow on March 18, 2018. / AFP PHOTO / POOL / Alexander Zemlianichenko (Photo credit should read ALEXANDER ZEMLIANICHENKO/AFP/Getty Images)
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Russian President Vladimir Putin delivers a speech during a meeting with Russian athletes and team members, who will take part in the upcoming 2018 Pyeongchang Winter Olympic Games, at the Novo-Ogaryovo state residence outside Moscow on January 31, 2018. / AFP PHOTO / SPUTNIK / Alexey NIKOLSKYALEXEY NIKOLSKY/AFP/Getty Images
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Moscow CNN  — 

There are growing indications that US airstrikes killed and injured dozens of Russian military contractors in northern Syria earlier this month. But in stark contrast to the death of a Russian pilot shot down by rebels in Syria In January, when the airman was hailed as a hero by the Defense Ministry, Moscow appears to wish this story would go away.

The Kremlin has downplayed reports of mass casualties, not named any of those who died and not said why they were there in the first place.

But families of the dead men are starting to ask questions. And details of just why the mercenaries were in the oil-rich region – and the target of their ill-fated operation – are starting to emerge.

On the night of February 7, a 500-strong force largely made up of the Russian contractors and a Christian militia loyal to the Syrian regime crossed the River Euphrates near Deir Ezzor, a Syrian city held by ISIS until the end of last year.