Moscow blames Israel for downing of Russian plane over Mediterranean

The Kremlin is blaming Israel for the downing of one of its military planes near Syria late Monday.

A Syrian anti-aircraft system accidentally shot down the plane, killing all 15 on board, as it responded to Israeli fighter jets attacking targets in northwestern Syria.

{mosads}“The Israeli pilots were using the Russian aircraft as a shield and pushed it into the line of fire of the Syrian defense,” Ministry spokesman Maj. Gen. Igor Konashenkov said in a statement to The Associated Press. 

Russian Defence Ministry: Russian Ilyushin Il-20 plane was downed by Syrian Air Defence missile after Israeli F-16 pilots used it as cover thus setting it up to be targeted by AA defence. Such actions can only be classified as a deliberate provocation https://t.co/qBcqPz2en6 pic.twitter.com/21mTTNXmpd

— Russia in RSA (@EmbassyofRussia) September 18, 2018

Moscow claimed Israel only gave it a one-minute warning of the attack despite the two nations having a hotline to alert each other of imminent operations.

Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu called his Israeli counterpart, Avigdor Lieberman, and placed the blame for the deaths at Israel’s feet, according to the AP. Israel’s ambassador in Moscow was also summoned to the Russian Foreign Ministry over the incident. 

Israel “expresses sorrow for the death of the aircrew members of the Russian plane that was downed tonight due to Syrian anti-aircraft fire,” Israeli army spokesman Brig. Gen. Ronen Manelis said in a statement to the Israeli publication Haaretz. 

The Russian Defense Ministry said a recovery operation was underway and it has already recovered some bodies and wreckage from the plane.

Russian and Israeli air forces have been crisscrossing the Syrian sky recently, with Moscow supporting Syrian President Bashar Assad in his country’s bloody civil war and Israel bombing targets associated with Iran and its proxy, Hezbollah, both Assad allies. 

Israel has acknowledged attacking Iranian targets in Syria about 200 times and has vowed that Iran, which is an enemy of Israel, would never establish a permanent military presence in Syria, which neighbors Israel.

Israel has thus far refrained from attacking targets directly associated either with Assad or with rebel forces.