Turkish fighter jets have shot down a Russian warplane near the Syrian border, with conflicting claims over whether the downed aircraft violated Turkish airspace.
The two pilots ejected before the plane crashed in northern Syria, with one reportedly shot by opposition forces as he landed and the other still missing.
Turkey’s military said two Turkish F-16s were involved in shooting down the plane, after issuing 10 warnings in five minutes.
Turkish prime minister Ahmet Davutoglu said his nation had the right to act against anyone violating its borders, while the Interior Ministry released a radar picture showing the alleged violation.
But Russia’s defence ministry said it could prove that the plane, a Sukhoi Su-24, had not violated Turkish airspace.
“The plane was at an altitude of 6,000 metres. Throughout its flight the plane remained exclusively over Syrian territory,” the defence ministry said.
Russian president Vladimir Putin called the incident a “stab in the back” and warned it would impact relations with Turkey.
Russian military helicopters launched searches for the pilots, but rebel and opposition activist sources told the AFP news agency one pilot was dead and the second remained missing.
The sources said the first pilot was killed by opposition forces who shot at him as he landed after ejecting from the plane.
Fadi Ahmed, a spokesman for the First Coastal Front rebel group, said “the Russian pilot was killed by gunfire as he fell with his parachute” in the Jabal Turkman area of Latakia province.
“The 10th Brigade [rebel group] transferred the body of the dead Russian to the local rebel joint operations room,” added Omar Jablawi, a media activist working with rebels in the area.
He declined to specify exactly where the joint operations room was located.
The sources said rebels were still searching for the second Russian pilot.
The plane went down in area known by Turks as Turkmen Mountain, in northern Syria near the Turkish border.
Sources: Various