Updated at 6:45 a.m. ET

A Russian surveillance plane carrying 15 people was accidentally shot down over northwestern Syria by regime forces, Russia's Ministry of Defense says. However, officials in Moscow are blaming Israel for the incident.

The defense ministry says the turbo-prop Il-20 "Coot" used for electronic reconnaissance disappeared from radar near the coastal city of Latakia on Tuesday just as Israeli F-16s were launching airstrikes on targets in the area.

The BBC reports: "The Israeli military refused to comment on reports its planes had targeted facilities in the Latakia area on Monday, saying: 'We don't comment on foreign reports.'"

"The trace of the Il-20 on flight control radars disappeared during an attack by four Israeli F-16 jets on Syrian facilities in Latakia province," the defense ministry said in a statement.

Russian defense ministry spokesman Igor Konashenkov said the F-16s were "Hiding behind the Russian aircraft," and that the Israeli pilots put the Russian plane "in the line of fire of Syrian anti-aircraft systems."

A Syrian S-200 surface-to-air missile brought down the plane, the ministry said.

"We view these provocative Israeli actions to be hostile," Konashenkov was quoted by Interfax as saying in a translation published in The Moscow Times.

"Fifteen Russian servicemen died as a result of the irresponsible actions of the Israeli military," he added.

Konashenkov said Russia reserves the right to take appropriate "retaliatory measures," but he provided no specifics.

"At the same time Russian air control radar systems detected rocket launches from the French frigate Auvergne which was located in that region," the Russian ministry said in a statement, but a French military spokesman denied the warship had any involvement in the shooting down of the Russian plane.

Syrian state media reported that Latakia came under attack at about the same time that the Il-20 disappeared as it was heading for a nearby Russian airbase. Syrian media says Syrian air defense batteries responded to "enemy missiles."

Russia's TASS news agency quoted the ministry as saying the plane was about 20 miles off the Syrian coast in the Mediterranean Sea when it went down.

There were no immediate reports of possible survivors. </s> A Russian military jet carrying 14 servicemen vanished from radar over the Mediterranean Sea late Monday as Syria came under attack by Israeli missiles, the defence ministry said.

“Connection has been lost with the crew of a Russian Il-20 plane over the Mediterranean Sea 35 kilometres from the Syrian coast as it was returning to the Hmeimim airbase,” the Russian defence ministry said early Tuesday.

The fate of the military personnel is “unknown,” the ministry said in a statement which was carried by Russian news agencies. A search for the plane was underway.

A search-and-rescue source told the Interfax news agency that the Russian warplane could have sunk in the Mediterranean Sea as a result of an “unforeseen critical incident” in the air.

The ministry said that the jet had gone off the radar around 11pm Monday (local time) during an attack by four Israeli F-16 jets over Syrian infrastructure in the province of Latakia, a stronghold of president Bashar al-Assad.

RIA Novosti news agency, citing a security source, said that Syrian anti-defence systems had countered a rocket attack.

There was no immediate comment from the Syrian government.

An Israeli military spokeswoman when asked about both the reported Israeli strike and the Russian plane said: “We don’t comment on foreign reports.”

A Pentagon spokesman said the United States was not involved and declined to provide further details.

“The missiles were not fired by the US military and we have nothing further at this time,” he said.

The Russian defence ministry also said that rockets had been launched from the French Navy’s frigate, The Auvergne, which was in the area at the time.

“The French army denies any involvement in this attack,” a French army spokesman said.

The jet vanished from radar just hours after Russia said there would be no assault against Syria’s Idlib as the presidents of Russia and Turkey agreed to create a “demilitarised zone” in the rebel-held province.

After more than four hours of talks with Russian president Vladimir Putin at his residence in the Black Sea resort of Sochi, Turkish leader Recep Tayyip Erdogan said their two countries would “prevent a humanitarian tragedy.”

Putin said the two leaders agreed to create a 15-20 kilometre-wide demilitarised zone along the line of contact between rebels and regime troops by October 15.

This would entail a “withdrawal of all radical fighters” from Idlib including the Al-Nusra Front and also the withdrawal of heavy weaponry including tanks, multiple launch rocket systems, Putin said.

Russia-backed forces of the Syrian regime have massed around Idlib province in recent weeks, sparking fears of an imminent air and ground attack to retake the last major opposition bastion.

Russia intervened in the Syrian conflict to buttress the Assad regime in 2015.

Russia has previously lost aircraft during its Syria campaign.

In November 2015, Turkey shot down a Russian warplane near the Syrian border, triggering a severe crisis in ties with Moscow. </s> A Russian military jet carrying 14 servicemen vanished from radar over the Mediterranean Sea late Monday as Syria came under attack by Israeli missiles, the defence ministry said.

"Connection has been lost with the crew of a Russian Il-20 plane over the Mediterranean Sea 35 kilometres from the Syrian coast as it was returning to the Hmeimim airbase," the Russian defence ministry said early Tuesday.

The fate of the military personnel is "unknown," the ministry said in a statement which was carried by Russian news agencies. A search for the plane was underway.

A search-and-rescue source told the Interfax news agency that the Russian warplane could have sunk in the Mediterranean Sea as a result of an "unforeseen critical incident" in the air.

The ministry said that the jet had gone off the radar around 11pm Monday (2000 GMT) during an attack by four Israeli F-16 jets over Syrian infrastructure in the province of Latakia, a stronghold of President Bashar al-Assad.

RIA Novosti news agency, citing a security source, said that Syrian anti-defence systems had countered a rocket attack.

There was no immediate comment from the Syrian government.

An Israeli military spokeswoman when asked about both the reported Israeli strike and the Russian plane said: "We don't comment on foreign reports."

A Pentagon spokesman said the United States was not involved and declined to provide further details.

"The missiles were not fired by the US military and we have nothing further at this time," he said.

The Russian defence ministry also said that rockets had been launched from the French Navy's frigate, The Auvergne, which was in the area at the time.

"The French army denies any involvement in this attack," a French army spokesman said.

The jet vanished from radar just hours after Russia said there would be no assault against Syria's Idlib as the presidents of Russia and Turkey agreed to create a "demilitarised zone" in the rebel-held province.

After more than four hours of talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin at his residence in the Black Sea resort of Sochi, Turkish leader Recep Tayyip Erdogan said their two countries would "prevent a humanitarian tragedy."

Putin said the two leaders agreed to create a 15-20 kilometre-wide demilitarised zone along the line of contact between rebels and regime troops by October 15.

This would entail a "withdrawal of all radical fighters" from Idlib including the Al-Nusra Front and also the withdrawal of heavy weaponry including tanks, multiple launch rocket systems, Putin said.

Russia-backed forces of the Syrian regime have massed around Idlib province in recent weeks, sparking fears of an imminent air and ground attack to retake the last major opposition bastion.

Russia intervened in the Syrian conflict to buttress the Assad regime in 2015.

Russia has previously lost aircraft during its Syria campaign.

In November 2015, Turkey shot down a Russian warplane near the Syrian border, triggering a severe crisis in ties with Moscow. </s> , Moscow, Russian Federation, Sep 18 – A Russian military jet carrying 14 servicemen vanished from radar over the Mediterranean Sea late Monday as Syria came under attack by Israeli missiles, the defence ministry said.

“Connection has been lost with the crew of a Russian Il-20 plane over the Mediterranean Sea 35 kilometres from the Syrian coast as it was returning to the Hmeimim airbase,” the Russian defence ministry said early Tuesday.

The fate of the military personnel is “unknown,” the ministry said in a statement which was carried by Russian news agencies. A search for the plane was underway.

A search-and-rescue source told the Interfax news agency that the Russian warplane could have sunk in the Mediterranean Sea as a result of an “unforeseen critical incident” in the air.

The ministry said that the jet had gone off the radar around 11pm Monday (2000 GMT) during an attack by four Israeli F-16 jets over Syrian infrastructure in the province of Latakia, a stronghold of President Bashar al-Assad.

RIA Novosti news agency, citing a security source, said that Syrian anti-defence systems had countered a rocket attack.

There was no immediate comment from the Syrian government.

An Israeli military spokeswoman when asked about both the reported Israeli strike and the Russian plane said: “We don’t comment on foreign reports.”

A Pentagon spokesman said the United States was not involved and declined to provide further details.

“The missiles were not fired by the US military and we have nothing further at this time,” he said.

The Russian defence ministry also said that rockets had been launched from the French Navy’s frigate, The Auvergne, which was in the area at the time.

“The French army denies any involvement in this attack,” a French army spokesman said.

The jet vanished from radar just hours after Russia said there would be no assault against Syria’s Idlib as the presidents of Russia and Turkey agreed to create a “demilitarised zone” in the rebel-held province.

After more than four hours of talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin at his residence in the Black Sea resort of Sochi, Turkish leader Recep Tayyip Erdogan said their two countries would “prevent a humanitarian tragedy.”

Putin said the two leaders agreed to create a 15-20 kilometre-wide demilitarised zone along the line of contact between rebels and regime troops by October 15.

This would entail a “withdrawal of all radical fighters” from Idlib including the Al-Nusra Front and also the withdrawal of heavy weaponry including tanks, multiple launch rocket systems, Putin said.

Russia-backed forces of the Syrian regime have massed around Idlib province in recent weeks, sparking fears of an imminent air and ground attack to retake the last major opposition bastion.

Russia intervened in the Syrian conflict to buttress the Assad regime in 2015.

Russia has previously lost aircraft during its Syria campaign.

In November 2015, Turkey shot down a Russian warplane near the Syrian border, triggering a severe crisis in ties with Moscow. </s> The Russian Defence Ministry reported that the Russian Il-20 aircraft went off radar near Hmeymim airbase in Syria. The plane carried 14 servicemen; their fate is unknown.

Latakia came under fire earlier today in a missile attack military sources said come from the direction of the sea. The Russian Defense Ministry in its statement about the missing plane identified four Israeli F-16 airplanes as part of the attack on Latakia. Personnel at Hmeymim airbase have organized a search and rescue operation.

Israeli Defense Forces spokesperson refused to comment on the plane disappearance. After taking a break for a consultation with the command, the spokesperson said that IDF doesn't comment on reports from abroad.

Earlier on Monday, Syrian media reported a missile attack on the Syrian city of Latakia. A source told Sputnik that there were drones and missiles involved in the attack. Another source from Syrian military said that the missile attack on the coastal city was made from the sea. </s> The fate of the military personnel is 'unknown.' A search for the plane is underway.

MOSCOW, Russia – A Russian military jet carrying 14 servicemen vanished from radar over the Mediterranean Sea late Monday, September 17, as Syria came under attack by Israeli missiles, the defense ministry said.

"Connection has been lost with the crew of a Russian Il-20 plane over the Mediterranean Sea 35 kilometers from the Syrian coast as it was returning to the Hmeimim airbase," the Russian defense ministry said early Tuesday, September 18.

The fate of the military personnel is "unknown," the ministry said in a statement which was carried by Russian news agencies. A search for the plane was underway.

A search-and-rescue source told the Interfax news agency that the Russian warplane could have sunk in the Mediterranean Sea as a result of an "unforeseen critical incident" in the air.

The ministry said that the jet had gone off the radar around 11pm Monday (2000 GMT) during an attack by 4 Israeli F-16 jets over Syrian infrastructure in the province of Latakia, a stronghold of President Bashar al-Assad.

RIA Novosti news agency, citing a security source, said that Syrian anti-defense systems had countered a rocket attack.

There was no immediate comment from the Syrian government.

An Israeli military spokeswoman when asked about both the reported Israeli strike and the Russian plane said: "We don't comment on foreign reports."

A Pentagon spokesman said the United States was not involved and declined to provide further details.

"The missiles were not fired by the US military and we have nothing further at this time," he said.

The Russian defense ministry also said that rockets had been launched from the French Navy's frigate, The Auvergne, which was in the area at the time.

"The French army denies any involvement in this attack," a French army spokesman said.

The jet vanished from radar just hours after Russia said there would be no assault against Syria's Idlib as the presidents of Russia and Turkey agreed to create a "demilitarized zone" in the rebel-held province.

After more than 4 hours of talks with Russian President Vladimir Putin at his residence in the Black Sea resort of Sochi, Turkish leader Recep Tayyip Erdogan said their two countries would "prevent a humanitarian tragedy."

Putin said the two leaders agreed to create a 15-20 kilometer-wide demilitarized zone along the line of contact between rebels and regime troops by October 15.

This would entail a "withdrawal of all radical fighters" from Idlib including the Al-Nusra Front and also the withdrawal of heavy weaponry including tanks, multiple launch rocket systems, Putin said.

Russia-backed forces of the Syrian regime have massed around Idlib province in recent weeks, sparking fears of an imminent air and ground attack to retake the last major opposition bastion.

Russia intervened in the Syrian conflict to buttress the Assad regime in 2015.

Russia has previously lost aircraft during its Syria campaign.

In November 2015, Turkey shot down a Russian warplane near the Syrian border, triggering a severe crisis in ties with Moscow. – Rappler.com </s> Image copyright Getty Images Image caption The Il-20 aircraft was returning to a Russian base on the north-western coast of Syria (file photo)

Russia has said Syria shot down one of its military planes - but laid the blame for the deaths of the 15 personnel on board with Israel.

The defence ministry said Israeli jets put the Il-20 plane into the path of Syrian air defence systems on Monday after failing to give Moscow enough warning of a strike on Syrian targets.

The Il-20 disappeared off the radar at about 23:00 local time (20:00 GMT).

The Israel Defence Force (IDF) has expressed "sorrow" over the deaths.

However, in a statement released on Twitter, it added: "Israel holds the [Syrian President Bashar al-]Assad regime, whose military shot down the Russian plane, fully responsible for this incident."

It went on to say its jets were back in Israeli airspace by the time the missiles were launched.

Israel - which also blamed Iran and Hezbollah - rarely acknowledges carrying out strikes on Syria, but an Israeli military official recently said it had hit more than 200 Iranian targets in Syria over the past 18 months.

The Israeli government is concerned by what it calls Iran's "military entrenchment" in Syria, as well as shipments of Iranian weapons to the Lebanese militant group Hezbollah, which is fighting alongside Syrian government forces.

What exactly happened?

The details are murky, and Russia's account of the incident has yet to be verified.

Monday's incident is reported to have occurred about 35km (22 miles) from the Syrian coast as the Ilyushin Il-20 aircraft was returning to Russia's Hmeimim airbase near the north-western city of Latakia.

Russia's Tass news agency says the Il-20 plane "disappeared during an attack by four Israeli F-16 jets on Syrian facilities in Latakia province".

Reports on Syrian state media spoke of an attack in the area shortly before the plane disappeared. According to Sana news agency, the military said it had intercepted "enemy missiles coming from the open sea towards the city of Latakia".

Syrian television also reported explosions over the sky in Latakia just before 22:00. Thirty minutes later, the Sana Facebook page reported that Syrian air defences had responded to enemy missiles.

What does Russia accuse Israel of doing?

In a statement, Russia said Israel's "irresponsible actions" were to blame, saying it was given less than a minute's warning ahead of the strikes, which was not enough time to get the military surveillance plane out of the way.

"The Israeli planes deliberately created a dangerous situation for surface ships and aircraft in the area," a defence ministry spokesman said.

The spokesman accused Israeli pilots of "using the Russian airplane as a cover", putting it "in the line of fire coming from Syrian air defence systems".

The plane, the spokesman continued, was shot down by a Syrian missile.

"As a result of the irresponsible actions by the Israeli military, 15 Russian servicemen have died," the spokesman said.

It is not possible to verify any of these claims.

What has Israel said?

The IDF said its jets were targeting Syrian military facilities "from which systems to manufacture accurate and lethal weapons were about to be transferred on behalf of Iran to Hezbollah in Lebanon".

It added the Syrian anti-aircraft missiles were "inaccurate" and "extensive". What's more, it claimed its jets were back in Israeli airspace by the time the missiles were launched.

The statement also accused the Syrian military of failing "to ensure that no Russian planes were in the air", adding it would share the relevant information with Moscow.

In an earlier phone call on Tuesday, Russian Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu told his Israeli counterpart Avigdor Lieberman the blame "fully rests with Israel", adding that Russia "reserves the right to take further steps in response".

Russia later summoned the Israeli ambassador to its foreign ministry.

A search-and-rescue operation is under way.

Are the accusations fair?

Analysis by Jonathan Marcus, BBC Defence Correspondent

Russia's anger is real. But the question is, are the Russians attributing blame fairly?

The charges are two-fold. Long-standing and up to now effective information-sharing broke down.

The Israeli Air Force has Russian-speaking air traffic controllers able to communicate with their Russian opposite numbers. But Moscow says they were informed of the Israeli raid with only one minute's notice.

Secondly Russia charges - more seriously - that the Israelis used the large radar signature of the Ilyushin turbo-prop to mask their own aircraft.

But the radar signatures of the relatively slow Ilyushin and four nimble F-16 jets are radically different.

Furthermore, the Syrian air defences should have known the Russian plane was in-bound, whatever the Israelis were doing.

There may be several contributory factors in this tragedy. Russia cannot publicly castigate its Syrian allies. In private things may be rather different.

Why is a Russian aircraft in Syria?

Russia began military strikes in Syria in 2015 after a request from President Bashar al-Assad, who has stayed in power despite seven years of civil war which has so far killed more than 350,000 people.

The Russian military said in April of this year it had also spent 18 months helping to rebuild the air defence system, according to the UK's Guardian newspaper.

Hmeimim is Russia's main base for air strikes on rebel groups in Syria - strikes that have enabled President Assad's forces to recover much lost ground since 2015.

Russia says its air strikes only target "terrorists", but activists have said they mainly hit mainstream rebel fighters and civilians.

According to The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a UK-based monitoring group, at least 7,928 civilians and 10,069 combatants have been killed in Russian strikes.

Russia has also suffered personnel losses, including the deaths of 39 people when a Russian military transport plane crashed as it attempted to land at Hmeimim in March. </s> A Russian reconnaissance aircraft was brought down over the Mediterranean Sea as it was returning to its home base inside Syria, killing all 15 people on board.

FILE- In this file photo dated Friday, March 4, 2016, Russian warplanes are parked at Hemeimeem air base in Syria. (AP Photo/Pavel Golovkin, FILE)

A Russian reconnaissance aircraft was shot down by a Syrian missile over the Mediterranean Sea, killing all 15 people on board, the Russian Defence Ministry said Tuesday. It blamed Israel for the crash, saying the plane was caught in the crossfire as four Israeli fighters attacked targets in northwestern Syria.

The Russian military said the Il-20 reconnaissance aircraft was hit 35 kilometres (22 miles) offshore late Monday as it was returning to its home base nearby.

“The Israeli pilots were using the Russian aircraft as a shield and pushed it into the line of fire of the Syrian defence,” Defence Ministry spokesman Maj. Gen. Igor Konashenkov said.

Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu called his Israeli counterpart, Avigdor Lieberman, later Tuesday to say that Israel is “fully to blame” for the deaths, the ministry said.

The military said Israel did not warn it of its operation over Latakia province until one minute before the strike, which did not give the Russian plane enough time to escape.

The Israeli military said in a statement Tuesday that its jets were already within Israeli airspace when the incident occurred. Israel offered condolences over the death of the Russian troops but said it holds the Syrian government “fully responsible.” It also blamed Iran and Hezbollah for what it described as an “unfortunate incident.”

The Russian Defence Ministry said a recovery operation has already located the plane’s wreckage at sea and has retrieved some bodies and some fragments of the plane.

Related: Official: Russia knew in advance of Syrian chemical attack

Related: Putin declares victory on visit to air base in Syria

For several years, Israel and Russia have maintained a special hotline to prevent their air forces from clashing in the skies over Syria. Israeli military officials have previously praised its effectiveness.

Russia has been a key backer of Syrian President Bashar Assad and it has two military bases in the country, including one close to the Mediterranean coast.

Russia’s dramatic entry into the Syrian civil war in 2015 in support of the Syrian government, after a year of airstrikes by the U.S. and its coalition partners against the Islamic State group, increased the spectre of dangerous confrontations in the skies over Syria.

Turkey’s troops are also on the ground in northern Syria and are patrolling the skies over the region as Ankara seeks to ramp up its influence there and curb the expansion of Syrian Kurdish-controlled territory.

Israel has refrained from taking sides in the Syrian civil war. But it has acknowledged carrying out scores of airstrikes against archenemy Iran and its Shiite proxy Hezbollah.

Israel has also acknowledged attacking Iranian targets some 200 times. Israel has warned that it will not allow Iran to establish a permanent military presence in postwar Syria.

Throughout the fighting, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu has maintained continuous contact with Russia. Netanyahu frequently travels to Russia for talks with President Vladimir Putin to discuss the Syria issue.

The Israeli military said the Russian plane fell victim to the “extensive and inaccurate” firing of Syrian surface-to-air missile systems and that the Israeli jets — which were carrying out a raid against a Syrian government facility in another place — had already left Syrian airspace by that point.

The Israeli military said that hotline with Russia was in operation and that it would share with Russia all the data at its disposal.

Sima Shine, a former senior Mossad official and ex-deputy director-general at Israel’s Strategic Affairs Ministry, told Israel’s Army Radio station that the shooting down of the plane is problematic for many reasons.

“I think it will impose very serious restriction on Israel’s freedom of activity,” she said.

The plane crashed only hours after the leaders of Russia and Turkey reached an agreement to avert an all-out offensive by Syrian government forces to retake Syria’s last remaining rebel stronghold in Idlib.

Putin’s spokesman, Dmitry Peskov, on Tuesday called the deal “a landmark and crucial agreement for Syria’s future” and said the shooting down of the plane will have no impact on it.

In Damascus, Syria’s foreign ministry welcomed the agreement, while vowing that it will continue the fight against “terrorism until liberating the last inch of the Syrian territory, whether through military operations or through local reconciliations.”

Iran also welcomed the agreement, with Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif tweeting: “Diplomacy works.”

Josef Federman and Ian Deitch in Jerusalem and Bassem Mroue in Beirut contributed to this report.

Like us on Facebook and follow us on Twitter. </s> Moscow will bolster

 Syria’s air defence

 with a S-300 system and jam radars of military planes striking from off the coast of the Mediterranean following the downing of a Russian plane, its military chief said.

 Defence Minister Sergei Shoigu said that President Vladimir Putin has ordered additional security measures after a Syrian Soviet-era S-200 air defence missile shot down a Russian military plane by mistake, killing 15, in an incident last week that Moscow blames on Israel. “This has pushed us to adopt adequate response measures directed at boosting the security of Russian troops” in Syria, Shoigu said in a televised statement.

 “(Russia will) transfer the modern S-300 air defence system to the Syrian armed forces within two weeks.”

 Syrian military had already been trained to use the system, which was set to be sent over in 2013 but was held up “at the request of Israel,” Shoigu said.

 “In regions near Syria over the Mediterranean Sea, there will be radio-electronic suppression of satellite navigation, on-board radar systems and communication systems of military aviation attacking objects on Syrian territory.”

 Moscow says Israeli F-16 planes which struck Lat akia in western Syria on September 17 later used the landing Russian Il-20 surveillance plane as a “cover,” which resulted in the Il-20 being struck by a Syrian air defence missile. “We are certain that the realisation of these measures will cool the ‘hot heads’ and will keep them from poorly thought-out actions which threaten our servicemen,” Shoigu said.—AFP
A Russian Air Force Ilyushin Il-20 reconnaissance plane with 14 servicemen on board disappears from radar over the Mediterranean Sea during the missile attack on Syria's Latakia Governorate. A U.S. official claims the Syrian Army inadvertently shot it down while attempting to intercept missiles, while Russia detected a missile launch from a French FREMM multipurpose frigate.