Turkey has announced that two of its F-16 fighters have shot down a Russian military jet. They allege it was violating Turkish air space and had been warned several times that they would be attacked if they continued. Turkey has informed NATO and the UN of the incident.
Turkish military officials said Turkish F-16s had shot down the plane after repeatedly warning its pilots that they were violating Turkish airspace.
Video footage showed the plane crashing into mountains in Latakia province.
Russian media initially reported that one of its planes had crashed. There then were claims that it had been shot down from the ground. Russia denies the planes were over Turkish airspace and “has the information to prove it”. (MRDA). They claim both pilots ejected and that search and rescue helicopters are being sent to the area. They have now confirmed the plane was an Su-24 fighter jet.
Footage on Turkish TV shows one parachute landing in a wooded hillside. Syrian insurgents claim they are holding one in a mountainous area on the Syria/Turkey border.
The BBC incorporates BBC Monitoring which tunes into foreign broadcasts and reports these direct. Their latest report to date quotes Al-Jazeera Arabic.
Syrian activists have been quoted as saying that one of the pilots of the Russian Su-24 has been captured. He is said to be being held in the mountainous Utayrah area in Turkmen Mount, Qatar-based Al-Jazeera Arabic TV reports.
The main BBC News site has a live update page. Times shown are London time which is currently the same as GMT/UTC
Tuesday, Nov 24, 2015 · 10:22:19 AM +00:00 · Lib Dem FoP
The BBC’s correspondent in Turkey reports that the pilot was captured by Turkmen dissidents in Syria. Their defense correspondent interviewed in London added that the Russians have been attacking this group as part of its campaign against Assad opponents. The Turkish government have been supporting the Turkic forces and have protested these Russian actions.
Tuesday, Nov 24, 2015 · 10:32:38 AM +00:00 · Lib Dem FoP
In the video, the plane crashes onto a mountainside and with close examination there appears to be a tower on the ridge above, among the trees, of the sort used as border observation posts. That could indicate the plane crashed on the Turkish side of the border, assuming the video was shot in Turkey.