Turkey Shoots Down Two Syrian Jet Fighters, Testing Russian Resolve to Support Assad by David Gauthier-Villars - Wall Street Journal
Turkey’s air force downed two Syrian jet fighters, testing Russia’s dominance of Syrian airspace as a battle for control of the last rebel stronghold continued near the Turkish border.
Syria confirmed that two of its aircraft were shot down Sunday, adding that both planes’ pilots managed to eject and parachute to safety. The Russian-made Sukhoi Su-24 aircraft were hit above northwest Syria over areas held by the government, according to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a U.K.-based war monitor.
Meanwhile, throngs of migrants continued to stream toward Greece and Bulgaria after Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said Saturday that his country would no longer prevent them from attempting to cross into the European Union…
Syria War: Turkish Drone Strikes 'Kill 19 Syrian Soldiers' – BBC News
Nineteen Syrian soldiers have been killed in Turkish drone strikes on Idlib, a UK-based monitor has said.
According to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR), the attacks targeted a military convoy and an army base amid increasing violence.
Turkey also shot down two Syrian fighter jets on Sunday.
Russia, a key backer of the Syrian government, has warned it cannot guarantee the safety of Turkish aircraft in Syrian airspace.
Tensions in Idlib escalated sharply last week when at least 33 Turkish soldiers were killed in an air strike…
Syrian Jets 'Downed' As Turkey Says 'No Desire Or Intention To Clash With Russia' – Radio Free Europe / Radio Liberty
Turkey's defense minister said on March 1 that his country was "successfully" continuing its military operation in northwestern Syria against the Russian-backed regime in Damascus and that Ankara doesn't have "the desire or intention to clash with Russia."
Within hours of that statement, reports from Syria claimed that Turkish forces had downed Syrian warplanes as concerns mounted of an escalation of direct clashes between NATO member Turkey and forces of Russian ally Syria.
Turkish military forces announced an intensification of their campaign via Operation Spring Shield after 34 Turkish soldiers were killed in a Syrian air strike in the Idlib region, where Russian air power has been used to help forces loyal to embattled Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.