This article is from the source 'nytimes' 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.nytimes.com/2014/12/25/world/middleeast/isis-syria.html

The article has changed 12 times. There is an RSS feed of changes available.

Version 2 Version 3
ISIS Shoots Down Jet From U.S.-Led Coalition, Syrian Monitors Say ISIS Captures Jordanian Fighter Pilot in Syria
(about 1 hour later)
BEIRUT, Lebanon — Militants from the Islamic State extremist group have shot down a fighter jet over Syria deployed by the United States-led coalition that is battling the group and have captured a pilot from an Arab country, a Syrian monitoring organization said on Wednesday. BEIRUT, Lebanon — Militants from the Islamic State extremist group have captured a Jordanian fighter pilot, Jordan’s state news service reported on Wednesday after reports that the pilot’s plane was shot down over northern Syria.
The monitoring group, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, said the militants had fired an antiaircraft missile to bring down the jet near Raqqa, in northern Syria. It did not give the pilot’s name or nationality. Shooting down a fighter jet from the United States-led coalition against the Islamic State would be a first for the group. The pilot’s capture is also a coup that could shake the resolve of the Arab countries in the coalition, which began bombing Islamic State sites in Iraq and Syria this year.
If confirmed, the strike and capture would signal the harshest blow yet to the coalition and could affect the resolve of the Arab nations that have joined the United States in its air campaign to weaken the Islamic State — also known as ISIS or ISIL — in Iraq and Syria. The Jordanian military said in a statement reported by Petra, the country’s state-run news service, that one of its pilots had been taken hostage and that the Jordanian government held the group and its supporters responsible for his safety.
The coalition was formed this year and includes Bahrain, Jordan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. It said that his plane “went down” while Jordanian jets were carrying out a mission aimed at Islamic State sites near Raqqa, in northern Syria.
While American officials have lauded the contributions of their Arab partners, they also acknowledge that the majority of the strikes have been carried out by the United States, with its partners often playing a supporting role. Earlier on Wednesday, supporters of the Islamic State reported the capture on social media, saying it happened after the pilot’s plane was shot down, and posting photos of the jet’s debris and of the captured pilot in a white T-shirt and surrounded by masked gunmen.
The United States’ Arab allies have avoided giving much detail about their role in the campaign, mostly over fears of retribution by the Islamic State or to avoid domestic blowback from citizens who support the extremists. They also posted his military identification card, which gave his name as First Lt. Moaz Safi Yousef al-Kasasbeh.
The capture would be the first of a coalition pilot, and the militants could seek to use the hostage to obtain ransom or concessions. American officials have lauded the contributions of their Arab allies, but also acknowledge that most of the strikes have been carried out by the United States, with its partners often playing a supporting role.
A spokesman for the United States Central Command said it was seeking to verify the report. Those partners — Bahrain, Jordan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates — have avoided elaborating on their role in the campaign, mostly over fears of retribution by the Islamic State or to avoid domestic opposition from citizens who sympathize with the extremists.
Supporters of the Islamic State on social media said the captured pilot was from Jordan and posted photographs of a man in a white T-shirt surrounded by gunmen. Jordanian news outlets spoke with the captive pilot’s father, Yousef al-Kasasbeh, who said Jordanian officials had informed family members that their son had been captured and that Jordan’s military was doing it all it could to ensure his return.
Jordanian officials did not immediately respond to requests for comment. It remained unclear whether the capture would affect the participation of Jordan and other Arab countries in the fight against the Islamic State, also known as ISIS or ISIL, but the group will most likely use it to its advantage. The group has used hostages to negotiate prisoner swaps and to demand ransoms, and it has distributed grim videos of its fighters beheading Americans and Britons in what it has called revenge for those countries’ actions against it.
Raising another concern for the air campaign, the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a monitoring group, said the militants had brought down the plane with an antiaircraft missile. While the Islamic State has reportedly seized such missiles from military bases it has captured in Iraq and Syria, it remains unclear how many the group has.
The United States Central Command did not immediately comment on the attack or the capture of the pilot.