{"id":26767,"date":"2016-07-10T05:39:16","date_gmt":"2016-07-10T05:39:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/syria-russian-pilots-killed-as-isil-downs\/"},"modified":"2016-07-10T05:39:06","modified_gmt":"2016-07-10T05:39:06","slug":"syria-russian-pilots-killed-as-isil-downs","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/new.igihe.com\/english\/syria-russian-pilots-killed-as-isil-downs\/","title":{"rendered":"Syria: Russian pilots killed as &#8216;ISIL downs helicopter&#8217;"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>{Military helicopter involved in anti-ISIL operation crashes near Palmyra after being hit by gunfire from the ground.}<\/p>\n<p>Two Russian pilots have been killed in Syria after fighters from the Islamic State of Iraq and Levant (ISIL, also known as ISIS) shot down their helicopter near Palmyra, Russia&#8217;s defense ministry has said according to local media.<\/p>\n<p>The two men had been attacking a group of ISIL fighters in the Homs region on Friday, when the military chopper they were in ran out of ammunition, the Interfax news agency said, quoting the defense ministry.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;The turning helicopter was hit by militants&#8217; gunfire from the ground and crashed in the area controlled by the Syrian government army. The crew died,&#8221; Interfax said.<\/p>\n<p>ISIL claimed responsibility for the attack, according to SITE monitoring group.<\/p>\n<p>Footage published on Saturday by ISIL&#8217;s affiliated news agency Amaq showed a helicopter being shot and crashing to the ground.<\/p>\n<p>Russian forces entered the Syrian conflict in late September last year, backing the forces of President Bashar al-Assad. At least 12 Russian soldiers have been killed since Moscow launched its military operation.<\/p>\n<p>In November, Turkish fighter planes shot down a Russian bomber on the Syrian-Turkish border, triggering a crisis in relations between the two countries.<\/p>\n<p>Russia is helping Assad forces against ISIL and other rebel groups, mainly supporting the Syrian army with air strikes.<\/p>\n<p>Western countries have accused Russia of also targeting Syria&#8217;s moderate opposition and civilians &#8211; a claim denied by the Moscow.<\/p>\n<figure class=\"spip-document spip-document-13396 aligncenter\"><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/en-images.igihe.com\/jpg\/4df2320417374905b8954b91a1ac07de_18.jpg\" alt=\"Russian forces have been backing the Syrian government against ISIL and other groups\" \/><\/figure>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>{Military helicopter involved in anti-ISIL operation crashes near Palmyra after being hit by gunfire from the ground.} Two Russian pilots have been killed in Syria after fighters from the Islamic State of Iraq and Levant (ISIL, also known as ISIS) shot down their helicopter near Palmyra, Russia&#8217;s defense ministry has said according to local media. 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