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Israel 'shoots down' Syrian fighter near Golan Heights | |
(35 minutes later) | |
Israel has shot down a Syrian warplane which crossed into its airspace, the Israeli military says. | |
Two surface-to-air missiles were fired at the Sukhoi fighter jet, the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) tweeted. | |
According to Israeli reports, it happened over the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights. Unconfirmed reports say that a pilot was killed. | |
Syrian news agency Sana said Israel had targeted one of its jets over Syrian airspace, but did not say it was hit. | |
The agency quoted a military source as saying the plane was conducting raids against "armed terrorist groups" near the southern Yarmouk Valley. | |
Syria routinely describes rebel groups as terrorists. | |
Israel's Haaretz news website said residents in northern Israel saw interceptor missiles fired and heard explosions. | |
Flames and smoke were also later seen rising from the area of the fence between Syria and the Israeli-occupied Syrian Golan Heights, AFP news agency reports. | |
In a statement, the IDF said it was on "high alert" following "an increase in the internal fighting in Syria" and greater activity by Syria's air force in the region. | |
"The IDF monitored the advance of the fighter jet, which infiltrated about two kilometres (1.25 miles) into Israeli airspace. It was then intercepted by the Patriot missiles." | |
It is reportedly the first time Israel has shot down a manned Syrian aircraft since 2014. | It is reportedly the first time Israel has shot down a manned Syrian aircraft since 2014. |
The incident comes just a day after Israel used its David's Sling missile defence system - used against medium-range missiles - for the first time. | |
The system was activated "in response to the threat" from two Syrian surface-to-surface missiles approaching Israeli territory, an army statement said. | |
On Monday, the Syrian government condemned the evacuation by Israel over the weekend of the White Helmets civil defence group from a war zone in the south of the country. | |
Damascus described the move as a "criminal operation" by "Israel and its tools". | |
Some 422 volunteers and family members were taken to Jordan via the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights. | |
It was feared that they would be persecuted by advancing government forces in southern Syria. |