This article is from the source 'guardian' and was first published or seen on . It last changed over 40 days ago and won't be checked again for changes.

You can find the current article at its original source at http://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/nov/24/turkey-shoots-down-jet-near-border-with-syria

The article has changed 16 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.

Version 2 Version 3
Russia says jet shot down near Turkey-Syria border Turkey downs Russian warplane near Syria border
(35 minutes later)
Russia’s defence ministry says an SU-24 fighter jet has been shot down near Syria’s border with Turkey. Nato-member Turkey has shot down a Russian warplane in the first time the alliance and Moscow have come to blows directly over the crisis in Syria.
Turkey said its jets shot down a plane after it violated Turkey’s airspace. The jet was warned 10 times in the space of five minutes over airspace violations before it was shot down by F-16 fighter jets, the Turkish military said in a statement. Ankara and Moscow gave conflicting accounts of the incident, which appears to have occurred in an area near the Turkish-Syrian border straddling Iskenderun and Latakia.
The Turkish military said it scrambled two F-16 fighter jets after a plane penetrated Turkish airspace in the province of Hatay at 9.20am on Tuesday morning, warning it to leave 10 times in five minutes before it was shot down.
Related: Russian fighter jet downed near Turkey-Syria border – live updates
It was unclear if the plane was shot down by the fighter jets or by ground-based defence systems.
Russia’s defence ministry, in a series of tweets, confirmed a Russian SU-24 had been shot down, but insisted the plane had never left Syrian airspace.Russia’s defence ministry, in a series of tweets, confirmed a Russian SU-24 had been shot down, but insisted the plane had never left Syrian airspace.
“At all times, the SU-24 was exclusively over the territory of Syria … The SU-24 was at 6000 metres and preliminary information suggests it was brought down by fire from the ground. The circumstances are being investigated.” “At all times, the SU-24 was exclusively over the territory of Syria,” the defence ministry said. “The SU-24 was at 6000 metres and preliminary information suggests it was brought down by fire from the ground. The circumstances are being investigated.”
The ministry said preliminary information suggested that the pilots managed to successfully eject from the plane. The ministry said preliminary information suggested that the pilots managed to successfully eject from the plane. The Turkish network CNN Turk said that one of the pilots had been captured by local Turkmen tribesmen in the area.
Footage from private broadcaster Habertürk TV showed a warplane going down in flames in a woodland area, a long plume of smoke trailing behind it. The plane crashed in an area known by Turks as “Turkmen Mountain” in northern Syria near the border, Habertürk said. The area near where the plane was shot down is the site of ongoing clashes between forces loyal to the embattled Syrian president, Bashar al-Assad, and rebels fighting to overthrow him. Russia launched a military intervention in October aimed at protecting the areas in western Syria still under control by the regime after nearly five years of civil war. The northern Latakia countryside has seen repeated aerial assaults by both the Russian and Syrian air forces.
Separate footage from Turkey’s Anadolu Agency showed two pilots parachuting out of the jet before it crashed. Shortly after the Russian intervention, Turkey warned the Kremlin that it would not tolerate violations of its airspace, after two incidents that prompted consultations with Nato.
One of the pilots was in the hands of Turkmen forces in Syria who were searching for the other pilot, broadcaster CNN Turk reported, citing local sources. Turkey opposes Assad and has condemned the Russian intervention for targeting rebels not affiliated with the terror group Islamic State.
Russia has repeatedly carried out airstrikes in Syria in defence of President Bashar al-Assad. Russia’s defence ministry was not immediately available for comment. The latest incident highlights the grave risks of clashes of arms between the various international forces that have intervened in Syria. A coalition led by the US is conducting an ongoing campaign against Isis in the country, and American and Russian officials have worked on ensuring there are no clashes between their forces as they pursue their separate campaigns.
Turkey called this week for a UN security council meeting to discuss attacks on Turkmens in Syria, and last week Ankara summoned the Russian ambassador to protest the bombing of their villages. But the shooting down of the Russian plane is an escalation that leaves open the possibility of an open clash between a Nato member state and Russia, whose intervention shows an increasing assertiveness in international affairs.
Ankara has traditionally expressed solidarity with Syrian Turkmens, who are Syrians of Turkish descent.