ISRAEL (VOP TODAY NEWS) – Israeli Defense Minister Avigdor Lieberman said on Sunday that Israel would not stop operations in Syria against the Iranian military presence, despite the incident of shooting down a Russian military plane last Monday.
Syrian missiles fired at four Israeli F-16 fighter jets hit the Russian reconnaissance aircraft il-20, 35 kilometers from the Syrian coast on the Mediterranean Sea.
The plane was on its way to landing at the Russian in Hmeimim air base, carrying 15 Russian soldiers and officers.
In its first reaction on the day of the incident, the Russian Defense Ministry confirmed that Israel informed the Russian side of the attack only one minute before it began.
The Israeli pilots, under the cover of the Russian iL-20 aircraft, carried out their attack to be the target of the Syrian air defense. They were shot down by the S-200 and all those on board were killed.
Lieberman’s statement came today to the radio station “Reshet Bet” of the Israeli Broadcasting Corporation, against the backdrop of the Russian Ministry of Defense Tel Aviv responsibility for the crash of a reconnaissance plane, and the emergence of media speculation that Russia may limit the freedom of movement of the Israeli air force in the skies of Syria.
“We act and act cautiously and responsibly in cases where we have no other choice, so nothing has changed and will not change,” Lieberman said.
“We will not allow Syria to turn into an advanced Iranian base against Israel, and we continue to work … and that is why we have all the means and capabilities,” he said.
“The Israeli army continues to rely on the communications mechanisms it established three years ago with the Russian army in Syria in order to avoid clashes,” Lieberman said.
“The Israelis do not admit their guilt in the downfall of il-20,” he said, rejecting Moscow’s claims that Israeli fighter jets used the il-20 as a cover for another raid on Syria, offering it Syrian air defenses.
Israeli officials claim that the Syrian army fired anti-aircraft missiles “indiscriminately and unprofessionally” without making sure there were no other aircraft in the area.
According to Israeli allegations, a squadron of Tel Aviv aircraft returned to Israeli airspace when the Russian aircraft iL-20 hit the C-200.
Lieberman said that Israel was not interested in friction with Russia and would not argue with it through the media, but would do its best to restore relations between the two countries back to normal.
The defense minister blamed the Russian regime for completely dropping the plane.
