Russia has also now put out its own image in an attempt to counter the radar picture provided earlier by Turkey (See 10.26).
While the Turkish image appeared to show that the Russian jet briefly flew over southern Turkey before it as shot down, Russia’s suggests that there has been no airspace violation.
Elsewhere in the same conflict zone, an Assyrian group has said that the Islamic State (Isis) militant group have released 10 more Assyrian Christian hostages they had held captive in Syria since February.
The Associated Press reports:
The 10 were part of more than 220 Assyrian Christians captured by the extremist group after it overran communities on the southern bank of Khabur River in the northeastern Syrian province of Hassakeh.
The Assyrian Network for Human Rights said the 10 were released on Tuesday and that they are all in good condition. The Stockholm-based network says there are five women among the released.
It says the release brings the number of Assyrian hostages that have so far been released to 98.
The network also says the release was the result of ongoing mediation efforts by the head of the Assyrian Church of the East in Syria.
More now from the Russian military, and about that new statement that a marine on a helicopter sent in to search for the crew of the downed jet also died.
Russia’s military general staff is quoted by Russian news agencies as saying that one of the pilots of the Su-24 warplane that was shot down by Turkey was killed by groundfire as he parachuted from his crippled plane.
General staff spokesman Lt. Gen. Sergei Rudskoi, added that rebels in Syria fired on a Russian helicopter that was searching for the two pilots of the Su-24.
The shooting killed one crew member on the Mi-8 helicopter and forced it to land in neutral territory, he says.
The rest of the crew was evacuated. Rudskoi also said that Russian radar data showed that Turkish warplanes had violated Syrian airspace in the course of shooting down the Russian plane
Turkey’s international airports have also been busy. Many, if not most, of the estimated 15,000-20,000 foreign fighters to have joined the Islamic State (Isis) have first flown into Istanbul or Adana, or arrived by ferry along its Mediterranean coast.
The influx has offered fertile ground to allies of Assad who, well before a Turkish jet shot down a Russian fighter on Tuesday, had enabled, or even supported Isis. Vladimir Putin’s reference to Turkey as “accomplices of terrorists” is likely to resonate even among some of Ankara’s backers.
From midway through 2012, when jihadis started to travel to Syria, their presence was apparent at all points of the journey to the border.
At Istanbul airport, in the southern cities of Hatay and Gaziantep – both of which were staging points – and in the border villages.
Foreigners on their way to fight remained fixtures on these routes until late in 2014 when, after continued pressure from the EU states and the US, coordinated efforts were made to turn them back.
Russian journalists are being given a briefing by the defence ministry, I’m told by the Guardian’s Shaun Walker in Moscow.
These are the main lines so far as reported by RIA Novosti:
One of the two pilots has died, from “fire from the ground”.
The fate of the second pilot remains unclear. A helicopter sent to rescue the pilots was hit, performed an emergency landing, and one of the marines on board died.
Military contacts with Turkey will be severed.
Russia says Syrian air traffic control shows the Turkish F-16 which shot down the Russian plane violated Syrian airspace.
It’s Ben Quinn here picking up the blog now from Mark.
Here is a summary of the Obama-Hollande press conference at the White House. Ben Quinn is now taking over.
The US and France have agreed to step up strikes in Syria and Iraq to target Islamic State, but Hollande said France will not deploy ground forces. They agreed on the importance of closing the Turkish border to limit the movement of extremists into Europe.
Obama said Turkey had the right to defend its territory and air space. He says the downing of the Russian warplane by Turkey points to an “ongoing problem” with Russia’s airstrikes in Syria. If Russia would instead concentrate its airstrikes on the Islamic State group, he said, then mistakes would be “less likely to occur.”
Both criticised Russia for hitting moderate Syrian opposition forces, which they said only bolster President Bashar al-Assad’s government. Hollande would not provide a date for Assad’s transition from power but said it must be “as soon as possible.”
They urged Turkey and Russia to talk directly to prevent any escalation. The White House said the incursion lasted only seconds. Nato officials said Turkish aircraft could have escorted the plane out of Turkey.
In this video, a deputy commander of rebel Turkmen forces in Syria says his men shot at two Russian pilots after they ejected from their jet. He also claims to show parts of a Russian military parachute. Both Russia and its ally, the Syrian government, have carried out strikes in the area where the plane came down.
The Russians have contradicted Turkish claims that both Russian pilots are alive. The Russian military general staff says one of the men is dead, reports the RIA news agency.
In Brussels, Nato officials say the Russian jet entered Turkish airspace before it was shot down. Earlier the US said the Russian incursion into Turkish air space lasted just seconds. Nato ambassadors apparently believe Turkey could have shown more restraint. This from Reuters.
Diplomats present at the meeting told Reuters that while none of the 28 Nato envoys defended Russia’s actions, many expressed concern that Turkey did not escort the Russian warplane out of its airspace. “There are other ways of dealing with these kinds of incidents,” said one diplomat who declined to be named.
Hollande says strikes must be against Daesh and stresses the need to resolve the Syria crisis, which is relevant not just to Syria’s neighbours but the wider world as refugees leave the region. The French president stresses France will not deploy ground troops as that is up to local forces. Obama says the US is backing local forces with training and equipment as well as launching air strikes. He says the Vienna process, which includes Iran (also backers of Assad) for the first time, is the best option.
Obama: 'Turkey and Russia must talk and de-escalate'
On the downing of the Russian plane, Obama says it has the right to defend its territory and its airspace, and stresses the importance of Turkey and Russia working to de-escalate the situation. He says if Russia concentrates on Isis there would be fewer chances of mistakes. “The problem has been Russia’s focus on propping up Assad rather than concentrating on Isil.”
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