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Isis fighters capture Jordanian pilot after shooting down plane over Syria Isis fighters capture Jordanian pilot after downing plane over Syria
(about 1 hour later)
The Jordanian army said on Wednesday one of its pilots was captured by Islamic State (Isis) militants after his plane was downed during coalition air raids in Syria. Islamic State (Isis) fighters took a Jordanian pilot captive after his warplane was downed in north-eastern Syria on Wednesday, the first captive taken from the US-led coalition battling the jihadi group.
“Jordan holds the group and its supporters responsible for the safety of the pilot and his life,” an army statement read on state television said. Jordan’s armed forces said one of its pilots had been captured after his plane fell during an air raid over the province of Raqqa.
The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said the aircraft was shot down near the northern city of Raqqa, Islamic State de facto capital. “Jordan holds the group [Isis] and its supporters responsible for the safety of the pilot and his life,” an army statement read on state television said. It did not say whether the plane was shot down.
It is the first warplane shot down by Isis since the coalition began air strikes against the group in Syria three months ago. Isis social media accounts published pictures purportedly of the warplane’s pilot being held by the group’s fighters as well as images of what they said was his Jordanian military ID card.
The Raqqa Media Center group published a photograph said to be of the pilot, who appeared wearing a white shirt as he was surrounded by 11 fighters, some of them masked. Another photograph published by the group showed the man naked from the waist down and soaking wet being captured by three gunmen as he was taken out of what appeared to be a lake. The images were verified by two close relatives contacted by Reuters who said they had been notified by the head of the Jordanian air force the pilot was held captive.
The U.S.-led coalition has carried out hundreds of air strikes against Isis positions in Syria since 23 September. One of the images showed the pilot in a white shirt being led out of the water by several armed fighters. Another showed him on land surrounded by at least a dozen fighters in military fatigues and equipped with assault rifles.
Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates have joined in airstrikes against the extremist group, while Qatar is providing logistical support. Jordan is one of the countries participating in the US-led coalition set up to battle Isis and which has been bombing Isis targets in Syria since September.
Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Bahrain and the United Arab Emirates have also participated in or supported the strikes against Isis targets in Syria, according to US Central Command.
Raqqa province, which borders Turkey, is almost entirely under the control of Islamic State fighters.
Boosted by arms seized in Iraq, the group evicted most rival rebels from the province earlier this year and took control of a string of government military bases over the summer, including an air base.
The US is also bombing Islamic State targets in Iraq, where the group has seized swaths of territory.