The Russian Defense Ministry says three Russian journalists have been injured while traveling to frontline positions in Syria, the Associated Press reports.

The ministry said on Tuesday, November 24, that the three journalists on the way to the village of Al-Dagmashliya in the government-controlled province of Latakia were slightly injured when a missile landed near their car. The ministry says the journalists were taken to a hospital at the Russian military base.

Russia on September 31 began bombing operations against Islamic State militants in Syria at the request of the Syrian President Bashar Assad.

Journalists from Russian state-owned media outlets have been embedded with the Syrian government forces throughout the conflict that began in 2011 and has claimed more than 250,000 lives.