From the Liveblog of
Tuesday, March 3, 2020
Turkey shoots down Syrian fighter jet in northwest Idlib
Turkey shoots down a Syrian fighter jet in Syria’s Idlib province, marking the third such incident in as many days, as steady clashes between the two national armies appear to signal a new stage in the nine-year old war.
The Turkish Defense Ministry announces on Twitter that the Turkish military downed a L-39 warplane belonging to Syrian government forces.
Syrian state-run television reports that Turkish forces targeted a warplane as it was carrying out operations against “terrorist groups” in the rebel-held Idlib region. It is not immediately clear what happened to the plane’s crew.
Turkey has sent thousands of troops into Idlib to support the opposition fighters holed up there, but hasn’t been able to roll back the government’s advance.
Erdogan has said he hopes to broker a ceasefire in Syria later this week when he meets with Russian President Vladimir Putin in Moscow.
— AP
The Times of Israel Community.