A Russian warplane has crashed in Syria near the Turkish border on 24 November, according to local reports. The plane fell over Jebel al-Turkman mountain in Latakia, near the border with Turkey.
Russian media, the Russian defence ministry, and the Turkish presidency are reporting that the downed jet was a Russian-made Su-24. The Russian defence ministry claimed the jet hadnt violated Turkish airspace and said it can prove the aircraft was over Syria for whole flight.
Both pilots ejected and were seen parachuting to the ground. It is unclear which nation the jet belonged to, but suspected Russian helicopters were spotted searching for the pilots. One of the pilots of the downed jet has been detained by Turkmen forces allied with Turkey, according to CNN Turk.
Turkish security sources told CNN Turk that there has been an air space violation and the warplane was downed. Reuters quoted a Turkish military official as saying that the downed jet was warned ten times in five minutes before being shot down by their own F-16 fighter jets.
Turkish Prime Minister Ahmet DavutoÄŸlu has ordered the foreign ministry to hold consultations with NATO, the UN, and related countries on Syrian border developments.
Images shared on Twitter showed the jets fiery plummet to Earth and smoke rising from the crash site.
History of Russian jets over Turkey
In October, Turkey scrambled a pair of F-16 jets to intercept Russian warplanes which had allegedly violated its airspace. The Russian ambassador was also summoned to the ministry in protest against the violation. Turkey urged Russia not to repeat the violation or it would be held responsible for any undesired incident that may occur.
Russia and Turkey have long been at odds over Syria, with Russian president Vladimir Putin emerging as President Bashar al-Assads main international supporter, and his Turkish counterpart Recep Tayyip Erdogan seeking his removal as key to the solution to the conflict.
Turkey has given funds and arms to Islamist rebels seeking to oust the Syrian president and has been lobbying for an IS-free safe zone, where some of the two million Syrian refugees could be hosted. Erdogan has accused Syrian military of turning a blind eye to the killing of dozens of civilians.
Turkey had warned Russia that it must stop bombing civilian Turkmen villages in Syria close to the Turkish border. The Russian ambassador to Ankara was summoned to the Turkish foreign ministry to hear the protest.
Turkey warned that bombing villages populated by the Turkmen minority could lead to serious consequences.
Assad forces have launched a ground offensive on the mainly Turkmen villages in Bayir Bucak, north-west Latakia province.
