Syria’s former al-Qaeda affiliate claimed responsibility on Saturday for the downing of a Russian warplane in northern Syria, apparently using a surface-to-air missile.

The pilot was killed after he ejected and exchanged gunfire with militants on the ground, the Russian Defense Ministry and a monitoring group said.

Hayat Tahrir al-Sham, or HTS, a powerful rebel alliance that publicly split from al-Qaeda last year, said it had used a man-portable anti-aircraft system to shoot down the Su-25 fighter jet as it flew low over the opposition-held town of Saraqeb.

That claim was echoed by Russia’s Interfax news agency, quoting the Defense Ministry, as well as the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights.

The incident could raise tensions between Russia and Turkey, which is monitoring a so-called “de-escalation zone” in the northern province of Idlib as part of an agreement made during Syrian peace talks in the Kazakh capital, Astana.

It also raises questions about the source of the apparent MANPADS, a weapon for which Syria’s rebels have repeatedly pleaded from their international backers. The United States in particular has been strongly opposed, fearing that anti-aircraft weapons could fall into the hands of the country’s extremist groups.

“The United States has never provided MANPAD missiles to any group in Syria, and we are deeply concerned that such weapons are being used,” State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert said, according to Reuters.

Saraqeb has come under heavy bombardment from Russian and Syrian warplanes in recent days as pro-government forces try to recapture a strategic highway linking Damascus to Aleppo. The White Helmets civil defence group said on Saturday that seven civilians had been killed in at least 25 strikes on largely residential areas, some of them using barrel bombs.

In the hours after the Russian jet was downed, Moscow also claimed to have killed more than 30 militants in the area, Interfax reported. The agency quoted the defence ministry as saying it used “precision-guided weapons” to carry out the strike, but without giving details.

The use of MANPADS in a province where Turkish forces are nominally present could also anger Russia. The two countries have improved ties and cooperated in Syria in recent months, but relations hit an all-time low in 2015, when Turkey, a long-time supporter of the country’s rebels, also shot down a Russian warplane inside Syria.

Turkey set up observation points in Idlib last year, ostensibly to monitor the fighting between the rebels and government forces, but it has also been accused of fostering closer ties with HTS.

Moscow entered Syria’s civil war in 2015 on the side of President Bashar al-Assad. And its intervention turned the tide of the brutal war, allowing Syria’s government to recapture the city of Aleppo from the rebels and beat back militants in other parts of the country.

But Idlib remains under militant control, and HTS exercises significant influence even over areas it does not formally hold.

“Mahmoud Turkmani, the military commander of the HTS air defence battalion, managed to shoot down a military plane by an anti-aircraft MANPADS in the sky of Saraqeb in the Idlib countryside in late afternoon today,” Ebaa News, the unofficial media outlet used by HTS, reported on Saturday.

“That is the least revenge we can offer to our people and those occupiers should know that our sky is not a picnic,” Mahmoud reportedly said.

Idlib province is also home to more than a million displaced people from around Syria, and renewed fighting has pushed close to a quarter of a million residents to flee again since mid-December, cramming into already-packed houses and tented settlements across the region.

Despite repeated appeals to their international backers, rebel groups in Syria have never had a sustained supply of MANPADS. But they have occasionally used individual weapons captured from the battlefield. Rebels forces have shot down Syrian fighter jets and other Russian military aircraft. In August 2016, a Russian transport helicopter was shot down as it was flying over Saraqeb, killing all five people aboard.

Videos circulating online showed the alleged crash site of the fighter jet in Idlib’s Saraqeb, which the United Nations said has recently suffered “heavy shelling and aerial bombardment.” According to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, an air strike on a potato market there earlier this week killed at least 16 people, and the town’s hospital was also attacked.

Both Russia and the Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights said that the pilot Saturday was killed after exchanging fire with the rebels. He was able to communicate that he had ejected from the aircraft in an area held by HTS, but later “died in a fight with the terrorists,” Russia’s Defense Ministry said. The ministry also said it was working with Turkey to bring the pilot’s body home.

Syria’s war has raged for seven years, and half a million people have been killed. The conflict has sucked in world powers – like Russia – but also the United States and Iran. </s> The Russian Defence Ministry said Moscow had retaliated with a strike from an undisclosed high-precision weapon that wipedd out more than 30 militants in an area of Idlib province where the plane was downed. Reports say Russia fired numerous missiles from both the Mediterranean Sea and its Khmeimim air base in Syria. Army bosses said radio intelligence determined that more than 30 Al-Nusra righters were killed in strikes by "precision-guided weapons". Huge explosions have now been reported in a number of coastal areas, as well as Idlib, where the jet was shot down.

Syrian rebels shot down Russian warplane Su-25 and killed its pilot on the ground after he ejected from the plane. The SU-25 came down in an area of Syria's northern Idlib province that has seen heavy air strikes and fighting on the ground between government forces backed by Russia and Iran, and rebels who oppose President Bashar al-Assad. Syrians opposed to Assad see Russia as an invading force they blame for the deaths of thousands of civilians since Moscow joined the war on the side of the Syrian government in 2015. The Russian plane was shot down over the town of Khan al-Subl near the city of Saraqeb, close to a major highway where the Syrian army and Iranian-backed militias are trying to advance, a rebel source said. Although the Russian pilot escaped the crash, he was killed by rebels who had tried to capture him, the source said.

Tharir al-Sham, a jihadist group spearheaded by the former Syrian branch of al Qaeda, claimed responsibility for shooting down the plane, saying one of its fighters had scored a direct hit with a shoulder launched anti-aircraft missile. Senior commander Mahmoud Turkomani said in a statement released by the group, said: "This work is the least we can do to revenge our people. Let the criminal invaders know that our skies are not a picnic and they will not pass through without paying a price God willing." Russia's Defence Ministry also said that the aircraft was downed by a portable surface-to-air missile. The pilot reported that he had ejected by parachute, and he was later killed on the ground. It said: "The pilot died in a fight with terrorists." </s> Moscow: In a retaliatory move, massive Russian air strikes have killed at least 30 militants in Syria, where a Russian fighter jet was shot down, an official said on Sunday.

“A series of high-precision weapon strikes have been delivered in the area controlled by the Jabhat al-Nusra terrorist group, which brought down the Russian Su-25 jet by using a portable anti-aircraft missile system in the Syrian province Idlib,” Russia’s Defence Ministry said.

“According to radio intercepts, more than 30 Jabhat al-Nusra militants were killed,” Xinhua quoted the ministry as saying.

Earlier on Saturday, the ministry said a pilot survived the fighter jet crash but was later killed in a ground fight with terrorists.

The pilot had reported earlier that he ejected by parachute in the area, controlled by Jabhat al-Nusra militants.

In May 2017, the guarantors of the Syrian ceasefire — Russia, Iran and Turkey — agreed to set up the Syrian de-escalation zones in Syria, which includes Idlib province. </s> MOSCOW: In a retaliatory move, massive Russian air strikes have killed at least 30 militants in Syria, where a Russian fighter jet was shot down, an official said on Sunday.

"A series of high-precision weapon strikes have been delivered in the area controlled by the Jabhat al-Nusra terrorist group, which brought down the Russian Su-25 jet by using a portable anti-aircraft missile system in the Syrian province Idlib," Russia's Defense Ministry said.

"According to radio intercepts, more than 30 Jabhat al-Nusra militants were killed," Xinhua quoted the ministry as saying.

Earlier on Saturday, the ministry said a pilot survived the fighter jet crash but was later killed in a ground fight with terrorists.

The pilot had reported earlier that he ejected by parachute in the area, controlled by Jabhat al-Nusra militants.

In May 2017, the guarantors of the Syrian ceasefire -- Russia, Iran and Turkey -- agreed to set up the Syrian de-escalation zones in Syria, which includes Idlib province. </s> Syria: According to the information given by an official, in an incident that took place in Syria yesterday, where at least 30 militants lost their life when a Russian fighter jet was shot down.

While explaining the incident to the media, Russia’s Defense Ministry went on to say: “A series of high-precision weapon strikes have been delivered in the area controlled by the Jabhat al-Nusra terrorist group, which brought down the Russian Su-25 jet by using a portable anti-aircraft missile system in the Syrian province Idlib.”

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“According to radio intercepts, more than 30 Jabhat al-Nusra militants were killed,” Media quoted the ministry as saying. Earlier on Saturday, the ministry said a pilot survived the fighter jet crash but was later killed in a ground fight with terrorists.

The pilot had reported earlier that he ejected by parachute in the area, controlled by Jabhat al-Nusra militants.

In May 2017, the guarantors of the Syrian ceasefire — Russia, Iran and Turkey — agreed to set up the Syrian de-escalation zones in Syria, which includes Idlib province. </s> In a retaliatory move, massive Russian air strikes have killed at least 30 militants in Syria, where a Russian fighter jet was shot down, an official said on Sunday. “A series of high-precision weapon strikes have been delivered in the area controlled by the Jabhat al-Nusra terrorist group, which brought down the Russian Su-25 jet by using a portable anti-aircraft missile system in the Syrian province Idlib,” Russia’s Defense Ministry said. “According to radio intercepts, more than 30 Jabhat al-Nusra militants were killed,” Xinhua quoted the ministry as saying.

Earlier on Saturday, the ministry said a pilot survived the fighter jet crash but was later killed in a ground fight with terrorists. The pilot had reported earlier that he ejected by parachute in the area, controlled by Jabhat al-Nusra militants. In May 2017, the guarantors of the Syrian ceasefire — Russia, Iran and Turkey — agreed to set up the Syrian de-escalation zones in Syria, which includes Idlib province. A Russian pilot has been killed after his plane was shot down by militants in the Syrian province of Idlib, the Russian Defence Ministry has said.

“A Russian Su-25 aircraft crashed during a flight over the Idlib de-escalation area,” the ministry said in the statement on Saturday, Xinhua news agency reported. “The pilot died in a fight with the terrorists,” the statement said, adding that preliminary information showed that the plane was downed by use of a man-portable anti-aircraft missile system. “The Russian centre for the reconciliation of opposing sides in Syria and the Turkish side overseeing the Idlib de-escalation area are working to bring the Russian pilot’s body home,” it said. The pilot had reported earlier that he ejected by parachute in the area, controlled by Nusra Front militants. </s> CLOSE

A picture taken on Feb. 3, 2018, shows smoke billowing from the site of a downed Sukhoi-25 fighter jet in the the Syrian city of Saraqib, southwest of Aleppo. (Photo: Omar Haj Kadour, AFP/Getty Images)

Russian cruise-missile attacks killed more than two dozen Syrian rebels Saturday in northwest Syria after the pilot of a downed Russian fighter jet, who had parachuted to safety, was killed on the ground, according to Russian and Western media reports.

Russia's Interfax news agency quotes the Russian defense ministry as saying radio intelligence determined that more than 30 Al-Nusra fighters were killed in strikes by "precision-guided weapons."

The Russian military has been attacking rebels with Kalibr precision-guided cruise missiles fired by frigates and submarines attached to its Navy's task force in the Mediterranean, according to Interfax.

The latest incident comes as Syrian government forces, backed by Russian air support and Iranian arms, have intensified their offensive into Idlib. The northwest province is one of the last rebel-held bastions in Syria. It is also host to several Islamist groups affiliated with al-Qaeda.

The ministry said its Su-25 jet crashed after apparently being shot down by a hand-carried, ground-to-air missile. The pilot ejected safely, but was killed by militants on the ground, the ministry said, according to the state-owned TASS news agency.

The Britain-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, which has extensive contacts inside Syria, also said the pilot was killed after landing alive.

A Syrian militant in the area told The Associated Press that the Russian pilot was shot and killed when he resisted capture by opening fire with a pistol on the militants who tried to capture him. The militant refused to be identified by his real name because was not authorized to speak to the media.

A video circulating on social media shows a dead man with a bloodied face as bearded gunmen stood around him. One of them shouts: “He is Russian.”

The authenticity of the video could not be independently confirmed but it corresponds to events reported by the AP.

No group immediately claimed responsibility.

There have been dozens of Russian airstrikes in the area of Idlib province over the past 24 hours," according to Rami Abdel Rahman, who runs the monitoring group. "This plane was also carrying out raids there."

The Syrian regime launched its offensive against Idlib from the south and east in December last year.

Last month the Syrian army retook the strategic Abu Dhuhur airbase from insurgents in Idlib.

According to Jan Egeland, who heads the United Nations' task force on humanitarian aid for Syria, almost a quarter of a million people have been displaced into or from Idlib since the latest onslaught began less than two months ago.

Contributing: Associated Press

Read or Share this story: https://usat.ly/2GKOeV0 </s> Following the attack Russian Air Forces conducted a high-precision group strike in the area controlled by terrorist group Jabhat Fatah al-Sham [previously known as al-Nusra Front], from where the missile that downed the Russian jet fighter was allegedly launched.

The video footage and photos of the incident shared in social networks, shows the aftermath of the attack.

Another video supposedly depicts the Russian plane hit by MANPAD. </s> The Russian Ministry of Defense has released footage of a precision strike targeting terrorists in Idlib, north-west Syria, in retaliation for the earlier downing of an Su-25 jet and the killing of its pilot.

The night-vision footage shows missiles hitting ground targets which are destroyed in a series of fiery blasts. At least 30 terrorists are believed to have been killed in the operation.

On Saturday, the Russian Defence Ministry confirmed that one of its fighter jets was downed in the de-escalation zone in Idlib province. The pilot managed to eject from the aircraft and parachute down safely, but was then killed by militants on the ground, the MoD stated. The ministry is now trying to retrieve his body.

Tahrir al-Sham, the extremist group linked to Al-Nusra terrorists, has claimed responsibility for the downing of the Russian aircraft, according to Reuters.

Earlier, another militant group, Jaysh al-Nasr, which claims affiliation to the Free Syrian Army, also posted videos and statements about the Russian plane on its Twitter account. It said the jet was shot down by some air defense systems.

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The Interfax agency states that Russia retaliated with a missile attack, killing at least 30 Al-Nusra militants in North-West Syria with "precision-guided weapons".