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Georgian helicopter 'shot down' Georgian helicopter 'shot down'
(10 minutes later)
Authorities in the breakaway Georgian province of South Ossetia say they have shot down a Georgian government helicopter, Russian media reports. Authorities in the breakaway Georgian province of South Ossetia say they have shot down a Georgian government helicopter, Russian media report.
The action came after it violated airspace South Ossetia claims as its own, reports quoted officials saying.The action came after it violated airspace South Ossetia claims as its own, reports quoted officials saying.
Georgia said one of its helicopters had been downed, RIA-Novosti agency said. A Georgian commander said a helicopter had been fired at but was not downed.
South Ossetia has run its own affairs with Russian support since the war of the 1990s and has resisted moves by the Tbilisi government to rein it in.South Ossetia has run its own affairs with Russian support since the war of the 1990s and has resisted moves by the Tbilisi government to rein it in.
The interior ministry helicopter was shot down after its crew failed to respond to requests that they land or change their route, RIA-Novosti quoted South Ossetian government spokeswoman Irina Gagloyeva as saying.The interior ministry helicopter was shot down after its crew failed to respond to requests that they land or change their route, RIA-Novosti quoted South Ossetian government spokeswoman Irina Gagloyeva as saying.
The fate of the crew was not immediately known, she said, according to the agency.The fate of the crew was not immediately known, she said, according to the agency.
Tensions are never far from the surface and violence in the area flares occasionally, correspondents say.
Russia still has peacekeeping troops in South Ossetia although the Georgian parliament has called for them to be replaced with an international force.