Syrian Aircraft Shoots Down By Israeli Missile

Israel says it has shot down a Syrian fighter jet over its airspace - the first such incident in more than 30 years.The aircraft was hit by a Patriot missile while trying to "infiltrate" the Quneitra area of the Golan Heights, the Israeli Defence Forces (ID F) said. 

 An Israeli defence source identified the jet as a Russian-built Sukhoi Su-24 fighter plane. Previously it was reported to have been a MiG-21 aircraft.

The aircraft was hit by a Patriot missile

 It flew 800 metres into Israeli airspace and tried to return to Syria after the Patriot missile was fired, he said.

 The crew managed to abandon the plane in time and landed in Syrian territory, he added. 

 The Golan area, which Israel captured from Syria in the 1967 Middle East war, has seen clashes between the al Qaeda-linked Nusra Front and Syrian President Bashar al Assad's forces in recent weeks. 

 Syrian state TV confirmed Israel had shot down one of its planes, and described it as an act of aggression.

A file picture of the type of jet that was shot down

 It quoted a military source saying the attack came "in the framework of (Israel's) support for the terrorist (Islamic State) and the Nusra Front". 

 Israel's Defence Minister Moshe Yaalon said the aircraft had crossed into Israel in a "threatening way" and vowed to retaliate to any similar incidents in the future.

 "We will not allow (any) element, whether it is a terror group or a state, to threaten our security and breach our sovereignty," he said. 

 "We are committed first and foremost to ensure the security of the Israel's citizens and we will use all means at our disposal to do so."