Israel Downs Syrian Warplane

[naomi24]

//Syria described the downing of the aircraft as an act of aggression.

Yaalon said "Israel would respond strongly to perceived threats "whether they stemmed from a mistake or were deliberate".//

Another escalation?

http://www.reuters.com/article/2014/09/23/us-mideast-crisis-israel-idUSKCN0HI0IX20140923

[bazwillrun]

Good for them...Syria didnt fly over the border in error, pilots dont make "silly " mistakes in that part of the world.

[ChillDoubt]

Pilot bailed out so no harm done. One thing for sure - he won't do it again and it's a stark reminder to his colleagues to keep their wits about them whilst returning home for tea and medals.

[youngmafbog]

Was it over the border or just in a no fly zone?

Could have been a pilot legging it from Syria of course. It does happen.

[Svejk]

I'm not so sure. Even the Israelis are suggesting it was 'pilot-error'. I presume the latest coalition came to an understanding with Assad before violating Syrian airspace.

[bazwillrun]

syria will be happy to let it go as "pilot error"

they may be one of the few arab countries thats learnt its lesson when it comes to attacking Israel full on and the resulting consequences

[agchristie]

There are enough distractions in the region without this sort of incident. As regrettable as it is, let's hope for cool heads and proportionality.

[sevenOP]

Shot down over the Stolan heights: maybe the pilot had an original map?

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Golan_Heights

[sevenOP]

The Syrian bomber might have been attacking al-Nousra in the Golan Heights; the same al-Nousra that were holding 45 Fijian UN peacekeepers for two weeks in that very area.

Strange that Ireland are sending 130 troops into that same area knowing what happened to the UN Fiji group.
http://www.irishtimes.com/news/politics/oireachtas/coveney-confirms-more-irish-troops-to-be-sent-to-golan-heights-1.1939152