Special to WorldTribune.com

ANKARA — Syria, in a move that could escalate a brewing
conflict, has shot down a Turkish warplane.

Officials said the regime of Syrian President Bashar Assad has
acknowledged that his military shot down a Turkish Air Force F-4 fighter-jet
on June 22.

The officials said Assad told Turkish Prime Minister Recep Erdogan that the two crew members of the F-4 were rescued by Syrian authorities and deemed in good condition.

“Erdogan made a personal appeal to Assad, and information was supplied of the missing F-4,” an official said.

Officials said Assad apologized for the downing of the Turkish F-4. They said the Syrian president asserted that his military’s air defense command mistakenly determined that the F-4 was on a hostile mission.

“It is not possible to whitewash something like this,” Turkish President Abdullah Gul said on June 23. “Undoubtedly, whatever is necessary will be done.”

The disappearance of the F-4 came a day after a Syrian Air Force pilot
flew his MiG-21 fighter-jet into Jordan and received asylum. Syria has
accused Ankara of working to oust Assad as well as help the pilot defect.

“Turkey does not ship weapons to any neighboring country, including
Syria,” Turkish Foreign Ministry spokesperson Selcuk Unal said.

The Turkish military said the F-4 was lost over the eastern
Mediterranean on June 22. The military said it lost contact with the F-4
soon after it began its mission from Erhac airport near the border with
Syria.

Officials said Erdogan urged Assad to allow Turkish Navy ships and
helicopters to search for the F-4 in Syrian territorial waters. On June 23,
Turkish television said the two F-4 pilots had not been found.

The Syrian military said an unidentified aircraft violated Syrian air
space at low altitude over the Mediterranean. The military said Syrian air
defense batteries opened fire and struck the aircraft one kilometer from the
coast. Earlier, a Syrian journalist identified with the Assad regime said a
second Turkish aircraft had been struck by a Syrian surface-to-air missile,
but did not crash.

“Witnesses spotted two jets flying in from Turkish territory,” Syrian
journalist Ihab Sultan said. “One of the planes went down in Syria’s
territorial waters, while the other one kept flying despite being damaged.”

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