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Israeli Military Downs Syrian Warplane

by VOA News

   The Israeli military said it shot down a Syrian warplane Tuesday after
   it entered Israeli airspace.

   A statement issued by the Israeli Defense Forces said it fired two
   Patriot interceptor missiles at the fighter jet after it crossed "into
   Israeli territory."

   "The IDF monitored the advance of the fighter jet, which infiltrated
   about two kilometers into Israeli airspace," the statement said. "It
   was then intercepted by the Patriot missiles."

   Israel's Army Radio reported said the plane was shot down over the
   occupied Golan Heights but may have crashed on the Syrian-controlled
   side of the frontier.

   The army radio report said the condition of the pilot was unclear.

   Syrian state media said the plane was targeted while conducting raids
   in Syrian airspace.

   Israel seized the Golan Heights from Syria in 1967. The U.N. deployed a
   peacekeeping force there two years later.