A U.S. warplane shot down a Syrian army jet on Sunday in the southern Raqqa countryside with Washington saying the jet had dropped bombs near U.S. backed forces and Damascus saying the plane was downed while flying a mission against Islamic State militants. A Syrian army statement released on Syrian state television said the plane crashed and the pilot was missing. It said the incident took place on Sunday afternoon near a village called Rasafah. The “flagrant attack was an attempt to undermine the efforts of the army as the only effective force capable with its allies ... in fighting terrorism across its territory,” the Syrian army said. “This comes at a time when the Syrian army and its allies were making clear advances in fighting the Daesh (Islamic State) terrorist group.” read more http://www.huffingtonpost.com/entry...4b0f15cd5bc3d7b?bv7&ncid=inblnkushpmg00000009
Russia Warns U.S. After Downing of Syrian Warplane Russia on Monday condemned the American military’s downing of a Syrian warplane, suspending the use of a military hotline that Washington and Moscow have used to avoid collisions in Syrian airspace and threatening to target aircraft flown by the United States and its allies over Syria. The moves were the most recent example of an intensifying clash of words and interests between the two powers, which support different sides in the yearslong war in Syria. The Russian military has threatened to halt its use of the hotline in the past — notably after President Trump ordered the launch of missiles against a Syrian air base in April — only to continue and even expand its contacts with the United States military. It was not clear whether the latest suspension would be lasting. read https://www.nytimes.com/2017/06/19/world/middleeast/russia-syria.htmlmore https://www.nytimes.com/2017/06/19/world/middleeast/russia-syria.html
