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The Latest: Russian helicopter crashes in Syria, 2 dead

Associated Press
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A Syrian man feeds pigeons in front of campaign posters for parliamentary candidates in the Marjeh square, Damascus, Syria, Monday, April 11, 2016. The vote - expected to be a rubber stamp of President Bashar Assad's loyalists - will only proceed in government-controlled areas as the Damascus authorities are unable to organize any balloting in rebel-controlled areas or the territory under the Islamic State group. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar) (The Associated Press)

A Syrian man feeds pigeons in front of campaign posters for parliamentary candidates in the Marjeh square, Damascus, Syria, Monday, April 11, 2016. The vote - expected to be a rubber stamp of President Bashar Assad's loyalists - will only proceed in government-controlled areas as the Damascus authorities are unable to organize any balloting in rebel-controlled areas or the territory under the Islamic State group. (AP Photo/Hassan Ammar) (The Associated Press)

The Latest on the Syrian civil war (all times local):

11:30 a.m.

Russia says one of its helicopters crashed in Syria, killing the two pilots.

The Defense Ministry says the Mi-28N helicopter gunship crashed early Tuesday near Homs after completing its mission. It says there is no evidence that it came under fire.

The ministry says the bodies of the pilots have been recovered and taken to the Hemeimeem air base on Syria's coast.

Russia has been carrying out airstrikes since Sept. 30 in support of Syrian government forces. The air campaign has allowed Russia to test some of its latest weapons, including the Mi-28 helicopter.

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9:30 a.m.

A pro-government media outlet says Syrian troops have launched an offensive to retake a strategic hilltop village south of Aleppo from insurgents, including al-Qaida's local affiliate.

Al-Manar TV says the attack on Tel al-Ais was launched on Tuesday. Al-Manar is run by Lebanon's Hezbollah militant group, which is fighting alongside Syrian government forces.

The village overlooks a supply line connecting the capital, Damascus, to the northern city of Aleppo, parts of which have been held by insurgents since 2012.

A coalition of insurgent factions captured Tel al-Ais earlier this month after heavy fighting despite a U.S. and Russian-brokered cease-fire, which excludes the al-Qaida-affiliated Nusra Front.

The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, an activist-run monitoring group, says clashes are ongoing around Tel al-Ais and the nearby village of Khan Touman.