warplanes hitting targets inside syria. targets not believed to be connected to isis. this is a major development in that war-torn region which complicates things much, much further for the obama administration. let s go to our pentagon correspondent, barbara starr. barbara, what s the very latest? reporter: john, kate, what u.s. officials are telling us is where the russians struck in west central syria near the city of homs, this is an area that is not an isis stronghold. this is an area of anti-regime, anti-assad forces. the first thing is the political agenda of the russians by all accounts, according to the u.s., appears really to be to try and prop up the assad regime by striking in this area where these anti-regime militias are fighting assad s forces. this is not what the u.s. wanted to see. but let s look at the broader picture for the u.s. military, for u.s. pilots in the air over